Seeking a Happy Ending
by Eclipsing
Summary: The Winter War is finally over... but what will become of our famous Shinigami Substitute? And how will he deal with his new relationship with Rukia? Find out as the two deal with their love life and the unexpected events that tries to stand in their way!
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: HELLO! I finally got my new fic under way. It's actually does involve shinigamis and hollows. but the story takes place RIGHT AFTER Aizen's defeat.**

**This story is more focused on 'humor' for now. So it'll be a bit confusing and boring at first but bare with me...**

**B****ut there are two problems. One: I'm currently writing this at the same time with my other fic so I'm going to have to put the other one off for some time... (sorry for those who are reading Another Step Forward) Two: from the latest news on Kubo, the next few chapters in Bleach will have to do with some things in the past (or something like that, I can't remember much) so this fic might get thrown off. In order for me to avoid this I'm hoping to upload the entire fic in two weeks top. **

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach...sorry

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Prologue

* * *

"Is it over?"

Isshin stood up and looked around the battlefield. Everything was a mess. There were dead bodies of Arrancars, Espadas, Shinigamis, etc. It was a gruesome thing to behold.

"Yeah," the older shinigami said to the young, Tenth Division taicho, "At least for our part. What happened to Gin and Tosen?"

The younger taicho looked away. "Sadly they got away. We thought we got Gin but he was able to escape in the end."

Isshin just nodded and kept inspecting the battlefield.

Hitsugaya also looked at his surrounding. Their allies that were still standing were making their way to where Isshin and the other taichos just gathered. The wounded were being carried away with Orihime and the Fourth Division following them.

This winter had not been peaceful. Too many people have been kidnapped and killed. All because of Aizen and his desire to become the King. Soul Society had hoped that after the incident with Orihime getting kidnapped and everyone else being chased around by Hueco Mundo, the large number of Espadas that were killed would come to their advantage. But Aizen had other plans. During the entire four months that they were waiting for the start of the Winter War, Aizen had already planned ahead, creating a larger army of Espadas and Arrancars. So once the war started, Soul Society and their allies were struggling.

But now that seemed so long ago. For days they've been fighting this war. Too many deaths that made everyone wonder whether it was even worth the fight. Yamamoto agreed to let Urahara, Yoruichi and Isshin join the war, along with the Vizards and Uryuu's father, Ryuuken. Their contribution was critical. Hitsugaya couldn't help but wonder if they would have even won without them. But it was more shocking to see Isshin appear and announce that he was once a taicho in the Gotei 13. No wonder Ichigo had that overflowing reiatsu.

Speaking of Ichigo…

"Kurosaki," Byakuya walked up, "Where is your son?"

Isshin gave the Sixth Division taicho a grin. "Where else? The kid's gone after Aizen. They're all the way over there," Isshin pointed his finger off into the horizon, "Fighting where no one else can get hurt."

Byakuya nodded. "And I'm guessing Rukia has gone with them?"

"Yup," Isshin said, "My third-daughter had to follow that son of mine in case he messed up."

Shinji, the Vizard, suddenly appeared out of nowhere. "I can barely detect Ichigo or Aizen's reiatsu. Looks like their close to finishing their battle… or maybe they already have."

Urahara walked up to the men standing together. "Ara. What's with the long faces? We should be celebrating our victory!" He waved his arms above his head.

Isshin laughed at his old friend. "Right you are, Kisuke. When we get back home I'm expecting you to bring out all the sake that you have stashed in your store. I'm going to drink myself to death tonight!"

"My, my, are you planning on killing yourself?"

"Bleh! I'm already dead so let's have fun!"

Hitsuagay watched to two older men plan their drinking party and inviting those who were able to come. There is no way he'd agree to go.

"Toushiro!" Isshin called out.

"I said it's _Hitsugaya-taicho_!" he sneered back.

Isshin walked up and patted his icy blue hair. "You're too young to care what others call you. Anyways, you better come!"

"No," he quickly answered back.

"But taicho!" Matsumoto pouted, "I wanna go!"

"Then go!" Hitsugaya yelled, "Just don't drag me into a party of old geezers!"

"But everyone else is coming! It'd be boring without you," Matsumoto hugged her taicho into her bosom, "You're coming!"

Hitsugaya could feel a vein pop in his head, but couldn't respond because his words were being muffled out.

"Don't tell me you guys are going to have a party without us!"

Everything became still. The noise died down and Matsumoto released Hitsugaya. Everyone turned their attention to where the female voice came from. From afar they could see two figures slowly walking towards them. As they got closer it seemed like the sun was rising because everyone could see the famous orange appearing brighter with each step.

"Shouldn't we be one of the first people to get invited?" Ichigo asked with his usual grin.

Isshin smiled as he saw his bloody son walking towards them with his body being held up on one side by Rukia who was also smiling.

"You stupid son!" Isshin yelled, "How dare you make my delicate third-daughter carry your fat-ass around!"

"AHH!" Ichigo cried as Isshin jumped up and kicked him in the stomach, making him fly off of Rukia. Once he landed, he sat up and yelled back. "What the fuck old man! I'm seriously injured here!"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Isshin cried back, "If a small wound like that is what you call a 'serious injury', then it seems like I still have a lot more to teach you!"

Ichigo painfully stood up to pound on his father when the old man grabbed Rukia by the shoulders.

"My beautiful third-daughter! Papa is sorry for not raising Ichigo to a strong man like I am. But do not fret! I shall make a man out of him in time when you become my official daughter-in-law!" Isshin kept smiling (and Byakuya could be seen giving off a dangerous amount of reiatsu).

"Let go of her, beardy!" the red-faced Ichigo yelled as he sent a side kick to his father's ribs.

Rukia watched the father and son wrestling with each other as if they weren't injured at all.

"Rukia."

The woman turned around and saw Byakuya slowly walking up to her. She gave him an exhausted smile. "Hai, niisama?"

Byakuya stood in front of his sister and examined her with his eyes. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"Yes," Rukia nodded. And after a few seconds she turned her attention back to the fighting Kurosaki's. "Ichigo won."

Suddenly everyone around them started to cheer. They all heard Rukia. Ichigo, the Shinigami Substitute, has defeated Aizen. The war was over.

* * *

So you guys have just read the prologue... kinda boring and doesn't really give off a plot for the story. This isn't going to happen for another few chapters since its all about life after the Winter War and the development of the IchiRuki relationship. It's going to get more intense but until then it's more of a 'humor' fic.


	2. Home?

**Author's Note: THANK YOU to those who reviewed. I didn't think my prologue was that good but now I'm glad to know many of u guys liked it. Totally gives me the urge to continue with this fic.**

**Sadly I will not be able to post tomorrow night or the night after because my friends are taking me somewhere. Sorry. But I will post two (or maybe even three) chapters on Sunday when I get back. Cross your fingers!**

**This chapter is another humor... but with a bit more information about the last battle. The next chapter will give more detail about Aizen's defeat so this is just a head's up.**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach...sorry.

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Chapter 1: Home…?

* * *

"PARTY AT URAHARA!"

Everyone chanted these words as they were drinking the night away. After the wounded got healed, they set way to the human world. Yamamoto gave permission to the shinigamis to go and relax for only that one night because once the sun rises, it was back to work.

So while Tessai, Ururu, and Jinta were busy bringing out more bottles of sake, the shinigamis, humans, and vizards were getting drunk. BIG TIME.

"Oi!" Isshin called out, "Get me more sake!"

"More?!" Jinta questioned, "That was your eighth flask! Why are you drinking so much?!"

"Don't talk back to your elder! Just get me more! MORE! MORE!" Isshin yelled.

Everyone was agreeing with the ex-taicho. Empty bottles of sake were being placed in one corner of the room and they were screaming for more. At first Urahara was sulking that they were drinking away all of his sake, but Isshin got him to drown his worries away, which worked perfectly. The two were now shoulder to shoulder as they were dancing and singing. Ryuuken just drank his sake next to his old comrades with a disgusted look. Yoruichi was laughing next to Kuukaku who was busy ordering around Ganju.

Some of the drunks were blabbering on and on about how strong and courageous they were. Bets were making way as they opened the door to Urahara's basement to showcase their strength. The Fourth Division got more work in their hands once Kenpachi joined the fun.

And the night was still young.

"Ichigo?"

The famous orange head turned around and saw Rukia climbing up to Urahara's roof where he was sitting.

"Yo."

Rukia smiled as she sat next to Ichigo. "Why are you up here all alone? Shouldn't the 'Great Hero of the Winter War' be celebrating with everyone else downstairs?"

Ichigo scratched his hair with his usual scowl. "No way. With my old man drunk, who knows what kinds of stupid things he'll do. Not to mention Kenpachi trying to fight me and the glares Byakuya has been sending me was starting to get on my nerves. Nah, I like this silence a lot better."

The two looked up and stared at the full moon that they thought they would never see again. It was nice being back home. After all, the war was now over… or was it?

"Rukia?"

"Hmm?"

Ichigo sighed as he lied down, arms crossed behind his head. "Is it really alright for us to be celebrating?"

Rukia looked at the orange head. "What do you mean?"

"Well," he continued, "You and I know very well that Aizen _might_ not be dead… I know Yamamoto said it was okay but I still feel uneasy."

Rukia smiled. She lied down next to her friend and spoke, "Ichigo. I understand why you're worried so much. I am too. But you caused so much damage that there is no way Aizen is a threat anymore. Or at least not for awhile."

"But—"

"If you don't feel like celebrating, then that's fine. BUT! Do not ruin it for the others. They're worried about Aizen and the possibility that he might still be alive. But tonight, let them drink away for their fallen nakamas. That's the least we can do."

Ichigo sighed and nodded his head. He was about to fall asleep when Rukia suddenly stood up.

"Going back to the party?"

Rukia shook her head. "I want to go check on Karin and Yuzu. They've been alone for the past few days and I'm worried about them."

Ichigo smiled. He kind of liked how Rukia became so close to his sisters. And after finding out the truth about Isshin being a shinigami, they knew that he would have to take part in the war, thus leaving the twins alone in the house for who knows how long.

"Com'on," Ichigo grunted as he pushed himself up, "I'll go with you. I'm worried about them too. Mostly because of Kon."

Rukia laughed as the two jumped off the roof and made way to the Kurosaki Clinic.

By the time they arrived the house everything was dark and quiet. They must have gone to sleep. Ichigo opened the door and the two shinigamis walked in. The house was completely dark but they could hear some weird scratchy noise coming from the living room.

They walked to the noise and noticed that the T.V was still on but was only showing the noisy screen that appeared when there were no programs to show. Ichigo walked to the couch and saw the sleeping figures of his sisters.

"Looks like they fell asleep while watching T.V," Rukia whispered as she turned off the television.

Ichigo only nodded as he slowly picked up his sisters and carried them to their rooms. Rukia followed and help tuck Karin and Yuzu in their beds.

Ichigo walked out and looked around. "Where's Kon?" he asked Rukia who closed the door to the room that she was sharing with the twins.

"Dunno. Maybe he's in your room."

The two decided to go check. Ichigo opened the door slightly and saw a figure sleeping on his bed.

Kon.

Ichigo walked up and kicked his body off the bed.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Kon yelled as he scrambled around the ground, trying to rip the blanket off of him. "WHOSE THERE—" he stopped once his eyes fell on Rukia. He jumped up and threw his arms into the air. "NEESAN—OOF!"

Before he could get any closer Ichigo stuck out his muscular arm and Kon slammed into it. As Kon tried to sit up, Ichigo smashed his shinigami badge on his body's chest and the mod soul candy came out.

Rukia took the candy and placed it in the lion plushy as Ichigo climbed back into his body.

"Well, goodnight," Rukia called out as she tossed the complaining Kon into the closet and walked to the door.

"'Night," Ichigo replied back as he sat on his bed and watched Rukia leave.

It was good to be home.

* * *

A/N : I know. Still lacking a real story. But it will come in later chapters. I'm just getting warmed up so don't worry!

Next chapter will be EXTRA long while the chapter after that will be full of IchiRuki fluff! Get ready for them!


	3. Our Home

**Author's Note: I AM SORRRRRRYYYYY! I know I'm a week behind the promised day that I was suppose to submit new chapters for this fic. But I have good reasons!: 1) Last weekend I was at a cosplay convention so I was too busy... my friends really into it so I was dragged around everywhere; 2) I got a really bad case of STOMACH FLU that left me bedridden for several days; and 3) I have a major writer's bloc that I couldn't escape until I got sick. So hopefully you guys understand. And as a 'sorry, but thanks for all ur reviews so far,' I'm submitting a four part special!**

**This chapter is suppose to be a bit funny. But i also included a small info about Aizen (I might be foreshadowing something but I'm not yet sure, lol). I really didn't like the way I protrayed several characters in the last chapter and it's the same deal here. But the other chapters are much better.**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach...Sorry

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Chapter 2: Our Home

* * *

Rukia woke up the next morning with the sun shining into her eyes. She slowly sat up and scanned the room. The clock read 9am and while Karin was still sleeping in her bed, Yuzu was missing.

Knowing very well that she must be making breakfast, Rukia jumped out of bed and went to the bathroom to get ready for the new day.

Once she was inside, Rukia grabbed her toothbrush, applies some toothpaste on the brushes, and started to brush. It was then she noticed how familiar she has gotten to this house. Not only that, but she was now more comfortable in the human world in general. After rescuing Orihime and before the start of the Winter War, Rukia was dragged around by Yuzu and Karin getting even more introduced to this world and its lifestyle.

Of course she still liked it better when Ichigo took her out because then she could use some of his money to buy more Chappy items.

Rukia rinsed her mouth and cupped her hands to collect the falling water and splashed it over her face. It was very refreshing. She smiled as she repeated this several times until she turned off the faucet and grabbed her towel.

"You're up early."

Rukia turned around and smiled at the orange top who was yawning and scratching his bed-hair.

"Ohayo, strawberry," She smirked.

Ichigo just grunted as he pushed her aside and grabbed his toothbrush. As he started to brush his teeth Rukia finished cleaning her face and left to see Yuzu. Ichigo smiled as he watched the retreating form of his petite friend. He couldn't help but think back what happened the day before while ending his fight with Aizen

**Flashback**

"_ICHIGO!"_

"_STAY BACK, RUKIA!"_

_Rukia stopped where she was and just watched the damaged body of Ichigo struggling to stay up. But he was still in a much better shape than Aizen. He was a bloody mess and was down on one knee, barely able to move._

"_Not—cough—bad, Kurosaki-kun," Aizen said as he struggled to breathe. He looked at Rukia and let out a snort, "Remind me next time to bring a cheer squad to the battle as well."_

_Ichigo stared at the man as if he was crazy (more than he already was). "What are you talking about? What do you mean next time?"_

_Aizen gave a small smirk. His face was bloody and a cut ran down his left eye. He was in a big mess and he knew it. But he still had that confident face that made Ichigo sick to his stomach._

"_Exactly what it means," Aizen said when a beam shot down from the sky and surrounded him, "Next time."_

"_NO!" Ichigo cried as Aizen started to retreat, "DON'T FUCK WITH ME! GETSUGA TENSHOU!" Ichigo swung Zangetsu at Aizen with all his might. _

_Aizen looked down and saw the attack coming fast. His eyes flashed horror. "NO!" _

_BOOM!_

_Getsuga Tenshou made a hit and there was a loud explosion. Smoke was coming from where it hit._

_But as it dispersed there was no sign of Aizen anywhere._

"_Where is he?" Ichigo asked, disbelief in his eyes, "WHERE THE FUCK IS HE?!"_

"_Ichigo! Enough!" Rukia ran to her friend and grabbed his arm to stop him from shunpo-ing away, "You got him! He's dead!"_

"_NO HE ISN'T! HE'S NOT THERE!" Ichigo cried. He tired to go after Aizen but Rukia was persistent. "WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?! I HAVE TO GO AFTER HIM—eugh…"_

_Ichigo suddenly collapsed from the lack of energy. Rukia caught him just in time and slowly lowered their bodies to the ground. Rukia placed Ichigo's head on her lap… just like after his battle with Grand Fisher._

"_Ichigo," Rukia whispered as she stroked his spiky hair, "Stop. No more."_

_Ichigo was breathing hard from the lack of energy and the annoying guilt of not killing Aizen. But as Rukia kept stroking his hair, his breathing calmed and his expression relaxed a little. _

_He looked up at Rukia. "I'm sorry."_

"_For what?"_

_Ichigo swallowed hard. "For not getting Aizen in time."_

_Rukia gave him a weak smile and shook her head. "Nonsense. I'm sure you got Aizen. And even if you didn't, it's going to be okay. That man is too torn up to be a threat now."_

_Ichigo let out a small laugh then grunted in pain._

_Rukia placed her palms onto his bare chests and began her kidou._

_The orange head looked up at her and noticed tears in the corner of her eyes, slowly descending down. He painfully lifted one of his hands and wiped off the tear that was falling down her cheek and on to his. Rukia looked at him and gave him a reassuring smile so he returned the smile too._

_The two sat there, Rukia trying to heal much of Ichigo as possible and Ichigo staring up at Rukia whose been by his side the whole time he was fighting, encouraging him to not stop and win. _

_And now… everything was finally over._

**End of Flashback**

Ichigo walked downstairs and into the kitchen where he could smell something delicious. There, Rukia was helping Yuzu with their breakfast. Ichigo stopped at the bottom of the steps and smiled, feeling a hint of delight upon seeing the two girls interacting like real sisters.

_Wait? Did I just say…'delight'? What am I, some pussy?_ Ichigo thought as he got out of his trance and sat down on the table.

"Ohayo oniichan!" Yuzu called out with a big smile to show how happy she was seeing her brother again.

"Ohayo," Ichigo replied with his usual smirk.

A small grunt was heard coming down the steps. Karin just woke up and she was hungry. So she joined her brother on the table and waited for her food.

Rukia walked over and placed some bowls of rice on the table. She looked at one of the empty seats and frowned. "Ichigo?"

"Hmm?"

"I was wondering…"

"What?"

"…"

"What is it?"

"…"

Ichigo was getting impatient. "Dammit midget! Just say it?!"

Rukia whacked Ichigo on the head with her spoon before continuing. "I was going to ask where your father was!"

The wincing Ichigo rubbed the sore spot and looked around "Dunno. Maybe he stayed at Urahara's."

Rukia shrugged and walked back into the kitchen to help Yuzu carry in rest of the food. The four of them decided that there was no point in waiting for Isshin so they ate. Ichigo liked the fact that he was having breakfast without his father trying to strangle him with every bite.

When breakfast was over, Rukia and Yuzu returned to the kitchen to wash the dishes while Ichigo joined Karin for some T.V.

Karin looked up at her brother and noticed how tried he looked. "What happened?"

Ichigo looked at his sister without much thought. "What did what happen?"

"Your fight," she asked, "The war."

Ichigo gave her a grin. "I'm alive and that's all you have to know."

Karin nodded her head, understanding that her brother didn't want to talk too much about it.

_Ring Ring Ring_

Rukia, who just finished washing the dishes, reached for her phone in her pocket. "Moshi moshi?"

"_Rukia?_"

"Renji?"

Ichigo turned around when he heard Renji's name. He mouthed the words 'What is it?' to Rukia but she just shushed him with a wave of her hand.

"_Where are you?"_

"I'm home."

"…"

"Renji?"

"_Home, huh…"_ There was another pause on the other line. "_Well, I just wanted to let you know that some of us are getting ready to leave so you should come here and say 'goodbye.'_"

Rukia looked at the clock that was almost 11am. "Sure. Ichigo and I'll be there soon."

"_Alright, see you in a bit_."

"'kay," Rukia replied before she hung up her phone. She looked up to see Ichigo still looking at her from the couch. "Ichigo, Renji wants us to come to Urahara's store to see some of them back to Soul Society."

Ichigo grunted. "Fine. I'm already dressed so you go hurry up and get ready."

Rukia nodded and ran upstairs. Ichigo went back to the T.V. program with Karin when Yuzu suddenly ran to him.

"Oniichan."

"Hmm?"

Yuzu looked back at the stairs to make sure Rukia wasn't there and pulled both Ichigo and Karin closer to her as she whispered, "Do you think you can get several of Rukia-neesan's friends to come over for dinner tomorrow?"

"Why?"

Karin snorted as she leaned away from the group. "So you really want to do this?"

Yuzu nodded her head with a determined expression.

"What are you two talking about?" Ichigo asked his two sisters.

"Yuzu wants to throw a birthday party for Rukia-neesan tomorrow." Karin replied.

"Why?" Ichigo asked but Yuzu and Karin stared at him with disbelief. "What?"

Yuzu looked up at her brother with teary eyes. "How could you have forgotten that it's Rukia-neesan's birthday tomorrow!"

"What?!" Ichigo exclaimed and looked at his watched.

January 13.

"Shit."

Karin shook her head. "You really are dense."

Ichigo mumbled some words under his breath and pouted.

"Anyways, can you help me oniichan?"

The older brother sighed and nodded his head. "I'll go talk to them today. Besides, I doubt Renji and the others are all leaving today."

Yuzu silently cheered and went back to the kitchen to create a dinner list. At that point Rukia came down wearing a light coat over her knee-length dress, both bought with Yuzu a month before the war started.

Ichigo got up from the couch and went to the door, grabbing his jacket at the same time from the hanger. He shoved his feet into his shoes as Rukia stood behind him putting on her boots. Yuzu walked out from the kitchen to see them off.

"Well, we'll be back—WOAH!" Ichigo cried out.

When he opened the door, a body suddenly fell in. He quickly shoved Rukia behind him and Yuzu screamed with fear. Karin just calmly walked to the door to see what was going on.

Ichigo looked carefully at the body and flipped it over to its side, with his foot, to see none other than… Kurosaki Isshin. Still clad in his shinigami attire, he was snoring away with a note stuck on his forehead.

"What does it say?" Rukia asked over his arm.

Ichigo took the note and read it:

_Hello minna-san!_

_Just thought you might want him back. He was snoring so loud yesterday that we decided it would be best to drop him off as soon as possible. Hopefully you get this message soon instead of leaving him out all night!_

_-Urahara_

Ichigo scrunched up the note and tossed it into the garbage. "Whatever. See ya," he called out as he stepped over his snoring father and left the house.

Rukia waved to Yuzu, who waved back, and followed Ichigo to Urahara's store.

"Ne, Ichigo?"

"What?"

Rukia skipped passed him, hands held behind her back. She stopped and turned around to face him with a smile. "Aren't you glad we're back home?"

Ichigo looked at her and smirked. "Why, are you?"

Rukia turned her attention back on the road and slowly walked in front of her friend. "Yup. We can finally go back to a normal life."

"Che, what's so normal about our life?" Ichigo asked. He stopped when Rukia suddenly stopped in front of him. "What's wrong?"

"…"

He waited for an answer but Rukia remained silent. Ichigo walked up and pulled her arm to make her face him. "What?"

Rukia shook her head. "It's nothing," she said as she tired to walk away.

But Ichigo noticed her expression looked hurt. So he yanked harder on her arm to stop her from leaving. "I'm not buying it. Tell me what's wrong or else I'm not letting you go."

"Do you regret meeting me?" She quickly asked, looking at the ground.

Ichigo deepened his scowl. "Why would you think that?"

"Because," Rukia whispered, "Like you said, there's nothing normal about your life, especially after you met me. It would have been better if we had never met… Sorry."

Ichigo scratched the back of his head, a bit annoyed. "Rukia, you misunderstood me."

"Ichigo—"

"Let me finish," he interrupted, "When I said that our life isn't normal, I didn't mean it in a negative way. All I meant was that there aren't people with 'shinigami' as an occupation. But I'm glad that I am one. I'm glad to be different instead of living without the strength to protect those that I care."

Rukia still didn't look at him.

"I have no regret meeting you. If it wasn't for you, my family and friends would be dead by now. I'm grateful to have met you. Do you get it now?"

Rukia let out a long sigh and looked up to meet his amber eyes. "Come on. Let's go before everyone leaves." She turned around and walked the last two blocks to Urahara's store.

Ichigo watched the retreating form of his friend. He really wanted to stab himself with Zangestsu at that moment. Heck, he'd even welcome a blow from Kenpachi. With one last second cursing at himself, he followed Rukia. He stopped when he came up to the front door of the store.

"Oi, Ichigo!"

The orange head turned around and greeted Renji who was standing around with several other shinigamis. "Hey. You leaving?"

"Nope," Renji replied, "At least not today. Why? Were you going to cry if I did leave?"

Ichigo glared at him. "Shut up jackass. Anyways, come over here, there's something I need to ask you."

Renji walked up with a smirk. "You finally going to ask me out? Sorry but I don't lean that way," he said sarcastically.

Ichigo punched his friend in the face once they were alone by the corner of the store. "Baka. That's not it. I just wanted to know what you and the others are doing tomorrow night."

"Why?" Renji asked, though it was hard to hear him when his hand was holding his bruised nose.

"Well, tomorrow's Rukia's birthday and my sister want to throw her a surprise party. She asked me to invite you and her other friends."

Renji smiled. "Hell'ya we're going! I'll go tell the others!"

Ichigo grabbed Renji's shoulder before he got away. "Don't forget. This is a _surprise_ party, as in Rukia-must-NOT-know-about-it. Got it?"

Renji shrugged his friend's hand off and gave him a thumb's up. "I know, don't worry," he replied and disappeared into the store.

Ichigo sighed as he followed the red head. It was then he noticed that he couldn't see Rukia anywhere. At that moment he saw Hanataro walking by. "Oi! Hanataro!"

The young shinigami jumped up with a start upon hearing his name suddenly. He turned around and wore a wide smile upon seeing the familiar orange head. "Ichigo-san! How are you?"

"I'm fine," Ichigo replied, "By the way, do you know where Rukia is?"

Hanataro looked around the store and stroked his chin. "I think I saw her talking to a seated-shinigami but I wasn't sure who. After that she disappeared."

Ichigo sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck. _Damn that midget is making things too hard for me!_

Hanataro stared at Ichigo and spoke, "Um, Ichigo-san. Is anything the matter?"

Ichigo shook his head. "No, it's nothing. Thanks."

"No problem—ICHIGO-SAN!"

The orange head snapped into attention upon hearing Hanataro scream out his name. He was about to ask what was wrong when suddenly he was interrupted as somebody pulled his soul out of his body.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!"

"Ichigo! Come fight me!" Kenpachi exclaimed as he charged towards the startled Ichigo.

--

"Kuchiki Rukia."

Rukia bowed to the old man standing in front of her with Kuchiki Byakua, Sajin Komarmura, Retsu Unohana, Jushiro Ukitake, and Hitsugaya Toshiro standing next to him, in the underground training room underneath Urahara's store.

"Hai."

Yamamoto nodded in acknowledgement. "Are you aware as to why I called you down here?" He asked and noticed Rukia shaking her head. "Well, I wanted to ask what your intentions are from now on."

Rukia looked up at the man with perplexity. "I'm afraid I do not understand sir."

Byakuya took a step forward. "We would like to know whether you desire to continue staying here in the human world or come back to Soul Society with the rest of us."

It took a moment for Rukia to process the information. "You mean, I get to decide?"

"Yes," Yamamoto said, "Central 46 has not yet been fully restored so we captains have the right to decide. But we wanted to personally ask you of your desire. Not only did we try to execute you when you were innocent, but we tried several times to pry you way from your friends. But you've forgiven us each time and continued to help us during the war, ensuring our victory. That is why we all decided it would be best for you to decide your own fate."

Rukia averted her eyes from the captains in front of her. What was she to say? Sure she felt honored that these people were willing to let her decide which path she wanted to take but… what did she really want? Stay with her friend when she could leave them to allow them to lead a normal, peaceful life?

_Che, what's so normal about our life?_

Those words suddenly hit her. Yes, she was the cause of Ichigo's abnormality. If she was to leave him then he would be able to lead an easy life with no shinigami duties. Yes, this would be the right thing to do. Screw the pain it'll give her. It'd be better if Ichigo was happy anyways.

"Yamamoto-sotaicho."

"Yes?"

Rukia took a deep breath as she looked straight into his eyes, "I decided that I'll—"

"Stay home," somebody interrupted.

Rukia turned around to see Renji walking down the ladder.

"What?" she asked him.

Renji walked up to the captains, gave them a bow, and turned to Rukia. "Your home. When I called you earlier you said you were 'home.' I think that should be enough of a reason for you to stay here."

Rukia looked up at him with wide eyes. "I have no idea what you're saying. My home is—"

"Where _he _is."

Rukia turned around, this time looking at Byakuya who had interrupted. "Niisama?"

Byakuya looked straight into her violet eyes. "Rukia. We will not think any less of you if you decide to stay here, especially with that boy."

Rukia tried to talk but Renji slightly yanked on her shoulder to stop her. "Rukia, don't say something you'll regret later. I know you want to stay here—"

"But—"

"—And don't think for a second that you should leave for the sake of _that _guy," Renji emphasized, "He never blamed you for anything. For all its worth, he's grateful. So if you leave then expect him to fight through Soul Society again just to get you back."

Rukia looked down at her feet, not sure how to talk back.

Renji took another step forward to face Yamamoto and the others. "Allow me to speak in behalf of Kuchiki Rukia."

Yamamoto nodded.

Renji bowed in appreciation. "She shall remain here in the human world to aid the Shinigami Substitute, Kurosaki Ichigo, and his friends to defend the town of Karakura from Hollows."

Rukia snapped her head up. She couldn't believe what Renji was saying! Continue to stay in Karakura? That would mean Ichigo would have to deal with her when she was the one who brought so much trouble into his life. It would be better if she left…

She was about to talk but Yamamoto raised his hand to shush her.

"I'll shall accept her decision and abide by them," the older man said. He turned around as Ukitake summoned three Hell's Butterflies. Yamamoto, Ukitake, and Komaruma walked into the gates. "Keep up the good work, Kuchiki Rukia," he said before the shoji doors closed.

The others were walking back upstairs but Rukia grabbed Renji's arm and stopped him.

"Why?" she simply asked.

Renji smiled as he pulled his arm out of her grasp. "I did it for you. Because _here_ is your home," he answered and followed the three taichos.

Rukia stood there alone for a few moments. She wasn't sure whether to feel relief or pissed at her friend. Allowing a depressing sigh to escape her lips Rukia slowly made way back to the others.

When she finally came out to the upper world Rukia was shocked to see utter chaos. She slowly made way outside of the shop where several people had gathered.

"What's going on?" Rukia asked Orihme who was sipping tea with Uryuu, Chad, Tatsuki, and several other Shinigamis.

Orhime smiled up at her friend. "Kenpachi-taicho has been chasing after Kurosaki-kun and the rest of the Eleventh Division also got into the game."

Rukia looked up and sure enough there were black blurs running around outside of Urahara's store. Deciding there was nothing else to do Rukia sat next to her friends and watched the battle.

"KENPACHI! ENOUGH ALREADY!" Ichigo yelled out as he blocked another swing of Kenpachi's blade.

"You're just getting weak," he replied back with his usual, deadly grin.

Kenpachi swung his blade from the right and once it was blocked, he quickly chased after Ichigo who was using shunpo to escape the crazed man.

"KEN-CHAN!" Yachiru shouted, jumping on Kenpachi's large back at the same time.

The Sixth Division taicho stopped. "What?"

"Yamamoto-sotaicho wants you to come back to Soul Society right now!" She spoke with a sing-song tone.

"Che," Kenpachi snorted as he swung his zanpakutou away and stood up straight, "That old man always interfere a good fight." Without even looking back at Ichigo Kenpachi summoned two Hell's Butterflies and stepped into the senkaimon.

"What the fuck?" Ichigo whispered, looking dumbfounded as Kenpachi disappeared without another word. Now he was standing alone in the middle of the field looking like an idiot. After recovering from his confusion, Ichigo wrapped up Zangetsu onto his back and stepped back into his body that was safely placed in the corner. The rest of the Eleventh Division still wanted a good fight so they started to pick on the other shinigamis.

Renji walked up to the orange head and smirked. "What the hell was that all about?"

"No idea," Ichigo replied. He stood up and saw Rukia snacking on some cookie and tea with their friends. "Hey Renji."

"What?"

"I gotta go somewhere for a sec. Keep Rukia company and escort her home later."

Renji looked at his friend and asked, "What am I, your slave?"

Ichigo just punched him in the back. "Shut up and just do it."

"Fine," Renji muttered under his breath. Ichigo nodded as he quickly sneaked away from everyone. He walked down the street and rode the bus to the shopping center in Karakura. He went inside and looked at all the stores. He shoved his hands deeper into his pocket and smirked.

"Let's do this."

* * *

What is Ichigo planning? Read the next chapter NOW to find out!


	4. Happy Birthday!

**Author's Note: here is the next chapter which is of Rukia's birthday. And I made Ichigo's gift a bit different from all the other kinds that came out in several other fics. by other people. Sadly I couldn't portray exactly like how I envision it but I tried my best.**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach...Sorry

* * *

Chapter 3: Happy Birthday

* * *

Ichigo came home at around two with handful of grocery that Yuzu asked him to pick up earlier that day at the market. And now he was officially broke. Yuzu had asked him to buy too many things and the purchase he made yesterday at the mall wasn't helping his bank account either.

With a big sigh the man walked to his front door and opened it. "Tadaima."

"ICHIGOOO!"

"AH!"

As soon as Ichigo took a step in the house his father's feet slammed into him, sending him flying to the side.

"WHAT THE FUCK OLD MAN?!" Ichigo cried out.

"You are getting rusty my son!" Isshin spoke with hands on his hips, "Haven't I told you to always keep your guard up!"

"Shut up!" Ichigo threw a right hook at Isshin and the two started their usual fight.

"Oniichan! Otousan!" Yuzu pouted by the door.

"Let them be Yuzu. They'll never change," Karin yawned as she walked towards the door and helped her twin carry in the bags Ichigo dropped.

"Ha! You are full of openings my son!" Isshin cried, "Allow papa to teach you—AHHHH!"

Ichigo, tired of their little fight, grabbed Isshin's collar and threw him across the room. Satisfied with his result (which was an unconscious Isshin twitching on the ground in the corner) he walked into the kitchen with the remaining bags.

"Where's Rukia?" he asked.

"I think she's in your room," Yuzu replied. She walked up to her brother and pulled him down to her level to whisper in his ear, "Now quickly take her outside and don't come back until _after_ seven. I'll have everything ready by then."

Ichigo nodded and walked upstairs to follow his sister's instructions.

But wait a sec… since when did he allow himself to get pushed around by a ten year old?

_Whatever,_ Ichigo told himself. There was no use arguing now when he was already in front of his room. "Oi, Rukia." He walked inside to see his friend lying on his bed reading one of Karin's manga…like usual.

"Okaeri," Rukia said nonchalantly, not even tearing her eyes away from the manga.

Ichigo grunted, annoyed with her welcome. "Com'on midget get up. We're going out for awhile."

Rukia only lifted her face but her gaze was still on the page she was reading. "Why? Where are we going?"

"Just come," Ichigo said as he stepped out of his room again. He waited for Rukia to follow but she wasn't moving. "Rukia!"

"Fine! I'm coming!" Rukia grunted. She walked back to the twins' room to grab her jacket and followed Ichigo downstairs. "Where are we going anyways?"

"I said just shut up and follow me," Ichigo replied. He walked by the kitchen where Yuzu was starting to prepare dinner, "We'll be back."

"Itterrashai!"

"Bye Yuzu, Karin!" Rukia called back as they walked out the door.

And like Ichigo told her, she just followed her orange-haired friend wherever they were going… but why are they walking for so long?

"Ichigo?"

"…"

"Ichigo?"

"…"

"ICHIGO?!"

"WHAT MIDGET?!"

Rukia quickly retorted by kicking his shin and Ichigo bit his lower lip to stop himself from screaming in pain. "We've been walking around for almost twenty minutes. I will not go another step forward unless you tell me where we're going."

"Bitch," Ichigo murmured under his breath. He released his hold on his bruised shin and straightened up. "Look, we're almost there so be patient a bit longer."

"No," she sternly replied back, crossing her arms across her chest.

Ichigo sighed as he looked at his watch. He still had to stall her for another four hours. He was about to say something when he turned around and saw Rukia walking back the way they came. "Rukia! Where are you going?" he shouted out to her.

"HOME!" she yelled back stubbornly, "I'm tired and I want nothing more than to—ICHIGO!" Rukia screamed in shock when Ichigo suddenly walked up to her and tossed her over his shoulder. "What are you doing?! Put me down this instant!"

"Sorry but I'm not letting you go," Ichigo replied. He winced when he felt Rukia pounding his back with her fists.

"Let go of me Ichigo or else!"

Biting his lower lip, Ichigo kept walking while Rukia started kicking his chest. After some time Rukia's fussing died down and Ichigo walked peacefully to his destination.

"Ichigo."

"What now?" he sighed. He wasn't ready for more of her commotion because he already had enough bruises on his body now.

But instead of violently attacking her friend again, Rukia calmly asked, "How much longer?"

Ichigo smirked. "We're here."

"Wha—AH!"

Rukia yelped in surprise when Ichigo suddenly threw her off his shoulder. She expected to hit hard concrete but instead she landed on…sand? Rukia turned around and before her she saw the beautiful, blue bleach with the sun shining high above her.

Noticing her silence Ichigo decided to speak first. "I just thought it'd be nice if we had a break from all the work."

Rukia slowly stood up and smiled widely at her friend. "Well you should have told me."

Ichigo smirked as he grabbed her wrist and started to run towards the cold water. "Com'on!"

"Ichigo, wait!" Rukia shouted though she was still smiling.

The two spend hours playing at the beach. Shoes in hand, they splashed their feet into the winter ocean, running away whenever a big tide came in. Several times Ichigo would grab Rukia from behind, lifting her up in the air as if threatening to throw her into the water. Other times Rukia would jump into his arms whenever the cold water sent shocks throughout her body.

The two kept playing at the beach, pushing each other closer to the water, running away when it got too near, laughing at each other when the cold water touched them, and bickering about his name and her height. It was like any romantic movie…except for the fighting.

Before they knew it, four hours quickly went by.

Ichigo and Rukia were sitting in the sand, drying off their feet with the remaining heat from the setting sun. Ichigo looked down at his watch.

6:46pm.

It was almost time to go home, but since there was still some time left… "Rukia?"

"Yeah?"

Slowly Ichigo placed one of his hands over hers and gently interlaced their fingers. A blush spread across both their faces though they were still looking out into the horizon.

"Don't ever leave me," he shyly whispered.

Rukia snapped her head towards him but didn't say anything.

Sensing her movement, Ichigo lightly smiled as he faced her. "Meeting you has been the best thing to have ever happened to me since my mom died. So don't think for a second that I'd be happier without you."

The two kept staring at each other with their lips slightly tugged upwards. Rukia wanted to ask him more about what he meant and why he said it, but just by looking into his amber eyes she already knew the answer. It wasn't that he went to ask Renji or someone else about her talk with Yamamoto. But instead he easily figured it out and from the argument they had before arriving at Urahara's store yesterday.

Suddenly Ichiog's watch started beeping. Releasing his hold on her hand, Ichigo looked at his watch and pressed one of the side buttons to stop the annoying alarm.

"What is it?" Rukia asked.

Ichigo stood up and dusted off his pants. "It was just reminding me that it's time to go home." He extended his hand towards Rukia, "Let's go."

Rukia looked at his hand for a second and gently placed her hand on top of his as Ichigo helped her up. And despite the pleasure of touching each other, their hands slowly slipped away from each other's grasp.

"Come on midget," Ichigo smirked, though slightly blushing, "I don't want to carry you back home. You're a lot heavier than you look."

Rukia's blush was soon replaced by embarrassment. "Ichigo, you jerk!" She yelled as she chased after her friend.

After minutes of running here and there the two finally arrived at the front of the Kurosaki Clinic, breathless.

"Damn, hah, midget," Ichigo huffed as he leaned against the wall, "How can you run that fast in a gigai? I swear it looked like you used shunpo."

Rukia, who was leaning down with her hands on her knees, snorted. "Baka. You're just too slow."

Ichigo was about to retort when Rukia finally caught her breath and walked towards the door.

"Let's go in Ichigo," she called out.

Stuffing his hands inside his jacket, Ichigo followed. When he was standing right behind her Rukia opened the door to the dark house.

She flipped on the light.

"SURPRISSSEE!!"

Rukia jumped back, bumping into Ichigo's chest. "What's going on?" she asked with 'shock' written all over her face.

Not only was Ichigo's family and Kon waiting for them, but the house was full of their friends. All the taichos of Gotei 13 (except Yamamoto, Mayuri and Komarmura), Renji, Orihime, Uryuu, Chad, Tatsuki, Mizuiro, Keigo (WTF is he doing here?), Matsumoto, Hisagi, Yachiru, Ikkaku, Yumichika, Hinamori, Hanataro, Urahara, Yoruichi, Tessai, Ururu, Jinta, and many more.

Renji walked up and ruffled Rukia's hair. "Baka. Did you seriously forget today was your birthday?"

The birthday woman blinked at her friend with disbelief.

Isshin suddenly popped up in front of her (followed by the sound of cracking knuckles from Ichigo). "Yes Rukia-chan! We all wanted to celebrate your happy day and dear Yuzu decided to plan this whole surprise party! Look! She even prepared all the food and decoration!" Isshin pointed to his blushing daughter.

Rukia gave a heartwarming smile as she drew Yuzu into an embrace. "Thank you Yuzu."

Yuzu quickly responded with a tighter hug. "Don't mention it, Rukia-neesan!"

Ichiog watched as Rukia soon made way around the room thanking everyone that was there. He felt a warm feeling spreading throughout his stomach as he watched her smile—a real smile—on her face.

"Makes you feel good, doesn't it?"

Ichigo turned to face his father standing next to him. "What do you mean?"

Isshin smiled and patted Ichigo's back, "Seeing Rukia-chan smiling like that. I swear I haven't seen something that beautiful since your mother left." With that he quickly ran up to Rukia, picking her up and giving her a big bear hug. Rukia first screamed in surprise but quickly hugged him back.

Ichigo looked intently at Rukia's smile and nodded to Isshin's comment. Seriously, he hasn't seen such a beautiful smile in a long time… though he'll never admit it.

The rest of the night everyone spend celebrating Rukia's (150th?) birthday. Keigo learning flirting tips from Sinsui, Mizuiro asking out some of the older ladies, Kenpachi starting fights in the backyard with the Fourth Division following him, Orihime mixing up food ingredients and feeding them to Tatsuki, Uryuu trying to fix up Kon with Chad silently watching, etc. etc.

But the real excitement came after dinner and after eating all of Yuzu's Chappy birthday cake (which annoyed Ichigo but got a squeal of joy from Rukia).

"It's time for presents!" Matsumoto yelled as she pushed Rukia to the living room where everyone had already gathered.

Rukia sat on the couch as Yuzu picked out one big present from a pile by the coffee table. "Open this one first."

Rukia nodded as she pulled off the lid of the box to see a violet kimono neatly folded.

"Hisana made it during her last year alive," Byakuya announced, "She had told me that she wanted to give it to you once she found you."

Orihime leaned over to look at the beautiful kimono. "But why are you giving it to her now, Kuchiki-taicho?"

Byakuya brushed his scarf as he spoke, "Because I thought one of the servants had accidentally thrown it away. It wasn't until last week I found it."

"Arigato, niisama," Rukia smiled at her brother who only nodded through his cold expression. Rukia looked back at the kimono and smiled. It was violet with black and white patters of sakuras—

Ichigo lightly tapped his finger against Rukia's back without anyone noticing. This pulled her out of her trance as she placed the kimono on the empty coffee table.

"What next?" she asked Yuzu.

The little sister pulled out another big present from the pile.

"Oh! This one is from me!" Matsumoto cried out as she walked over and sat on the empty seat next to Rukia.

Rukia smiled at her well-rounded friend as she opened the present… and immediately slammed the lid back on.

"What's wrong?" Ichigo asked.

Rukia shook her head rigorously, "Nothing," she hastily replied, but Ichigo noticed a blush. Before he could ask about it Rukia yanked Matsumoto so that their faces were leveled. "How could you have bought something like this?!" Rukia whispered so nobody could hear her.

Matsumoto winked. "Because you're my good friend," she whispered back and quickly left the spot next to Rukia.

Before anyone else could ask, Isshin suddenly popped up from behind and handed Rukia a small box. "This is for my lovely third-daughter!"

Rukia let out a nervous laugh as she accepted the gift. "Arigato, Kurosaki-san."

"Tsk tsk," Isshin waved his index finger, "I thought I told you to call me 'papa.'"

"Shut up you old fart!" Ichigo yelled as he kicked Isshin away from him.

Rukia mouthed a small 'arigato' to Ichigo as she proceeded to open the small box… and slam it shut immediately, again. And this time Ichigo got a good glimpse of what was inside.

Both a bit flustered, they were frozen in their spot. Isshin suddenly popped right next to Ichigo again and threw his arm on his son's shoulder. "Haha! This present is not only for you, Rukia-chan, but also for my son—"

"That's it!" Ichigo yelled as he grabbed the arm on him and threw Isshin across the room, "You are not allowed to speak ever again!"

Isshin stood up and started the fake waterworks as he crawled over to Rukia. "My third-daughter, see how violent my son is? And I go all the way to get you two some condoms—"

"I said shut up!" Ichigo yelled louder as he landed a hard punch at his father.

"Oi! Ichigo!" Yoruichi called out with one hand cupped around her mouth and her other hand yanking the back collar of an escaping shopkeeper, "Urahara took part in the present!"

"Eh? Why did you rat me out Yoruichi?" Urahara whined behind his fan. He looked up and saw not Ichigo, but Byakuya standing before him.

"Chire—"

But before Byakuya could call out Senbonzakura, Urahara ran to the backyard with Byakuya following in tow.

And the night continued with Rukia opening presents. She got a lot of Chappy items (which Ichigo wasn't too happy about), and other items which she greatly appreciated. It wasn't until an hour before midnight that everyone decided to go home (or at least to Urahara's store for the shinigamis).

--

Rukia got out from the shower and closed the bathroom door. She was making way to the twin's room (where the girls were already asleep), but stopped when she noticed Ichigo's bedroom door slightly ajar. She peeked into the dark room and noticed the window open but nobody there.

"Ichigo?" she called out.

She entered the room and looked around. Kon could be heard snoring away inside the closet but nobody was occupying the bed. Rukia peered out of Ichigo's window and saw her friend's silhouette on the roof. With a questioning look she reached over to the edge and tried to pull herself up.

Ichigo was standing on his roof, looking out at his sleeping town when he heard rustling from below. He looked down and saw two small hands reaching up to grab the edge of the roof.

"AH!" he screamed in surprise as he fell on his butt.

"Shut up and help me!" Rukia's voice came from his window.

With his eyebrow raised, Ichigo crawled over to the edge and saw Rukia's face peering up at him. He smirked as he grabbed her hands and pulled her up. "What do you want midget?"

Rukia glared at him as she dusted off her clothes. "Baka, I just wanted to see where you were."

"Che," Ichigo snorted as he returned his gaze to the dark town.

Rukia stood next to him and welcomed the cool breeze blowing through her wet hair. Suddenly, she felt something cold hit her nose. Looking up she saw…snow? She let out a big smile as snow fell for the first time that winter.

"It's snowing," she whispered to no one in particular.

Ichigo looked up and shivered. "Man, its cold. I can't believe it's snowing so late this year."

Rukia shrugged as she stuck out her tongue to taste the falling snow.

Ichigo looked at his friend. Even though Rukia was smiling her wet hair made her shiver in the cold. He quickly pulled his jacket off and threw it on her face.

Rukia yelped in surprise.

"You looked cold," he simply stated with a shrug.

Rukia first glared at him, ready to kick his shin for having scared her, but decided against it. She slipped her arms through the sleeves and snuggled into the warmth. She then walked around the roof chasing after the snow. Ichigo watched her at first but then turned around and looked up at the moon.

When her hands started to feel numb from the cold, Rukia shoved them into the jacket pockets to warm them up… but her left hand collided with something inside.

"What's this?" Rukia asked.

Ichigo turned around and saw her pulling something out of his pocket. Remembering what he had in there, his face started to heat up so he looked away.

When no response came from Ichigo she looked at the black box and opened it. Inside was a necklace, a beautiful chain of white gold. But the small pendant in the middle was something else entirely.

It was a gem in form of a black sun that was partly covered by a white, diamond encrusted crescent moon on the side.

"What is this?" she asked again but this time breathlessly.

Taking a deep breath Ichigo walked over and carefully pulled out the necklace from the box. "I got this for your birthday but I didn't want to give it to you in front of everyone."

"Why not?" she asked.

Ichigo shrugged. He then walked behind her and gently placed the necklace on her neck. Rukia blushed when she felt his hands behind her neck as he clipped the ends together.

"Happy birthday," he whispered as his hands fell down to his sides.

Rukia turned around and tip toed to give him a light peck on his cheek. "Thank you," she whispered back.

Ichigo's blush grew into a deeper shade of red. Coughing he looked away. "Whatever."

The two returned their gaze back to the sleeping town as it slowly got covered by a blanket of snow.

"By the way," Ichigo suddenly spoke, "What did Matsumoto give you?" He looked at Rukia who suddenly started to laugh. "What?"

"Nothing… I'll tell you about the present later," she replied.

* * *

And the info on the present will come out at least 3-4 chapters from now. but go read the next chapter which is suppose to be funny n lighten up ur day!


	5. Any Normal Day

**Author's Note: this chapter is mostly for laughs. You can tell this is where I had a MAJOR writer's bloc and replaced it with some silliness. So forgive me if it's boring here... But it will get better!**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach...Sorry

* * *

Chapter 4: Any Normal Day

* * *

Ichigo covered his mouth in order to try and stifle the yawn that was escaping. Ochi-sensei had been going on and on with her lecture and it was boring as hell. He looked outside the window and saw the whole field covered in the snow that fell the night before.

It looked like a Winter Wonderland…

…How gay was that last statement?

The bell finally rang to signal the start of lunch. Ichigo stretched his swore muscles and showed the yawn he had been hiding since morning. Because of Rukia's party last night he barely got any sleep.

He reached over to his bag and pulled out the bento his sister prepared (mostly leftovers from the party).

"ICHIGO!" Keigo jumped up from behind, "Let's go to the roof to our party of manliness!"

Ichigo just punched his hyper friend in the nose.

Tatsuki walked over and kicked Keigo who was already on the ground. "Baka, we can't go up there with all this snow. We'll just have to have lunch in the classroom today."

Chad, Uryuu, Mizuiro, Orihime, Chizuru, Ryo and Michiru gathered around where Ichigo and Rukia were watching Tatsuki kicking Keigo who kept suggesting stupid ideas on what to do in the snow.

Orihime pulled up two chairs for her and Tatsuki next to Rukia's desk. She pulled out her bento and opened the lid. "Kuchiki-san! Try this new combination I made last night! It's fried noodles mixed with red bean sauce and radish sauce, finally topped off with whip cream!"

Rukia gave her friend an awkward smile. "Thanks Inoue… but I should really eat Yuzu's lunch to help get rid of all the leftovers from last night."

"Oh, okay! Ano… Kurosaki-kun! Ishida-kun! Do you guys want to try?" Orihime sweetly asked the two guys who were hoping to avoid eye contact with her.

Ichigo and Uryuu spent the next few minutes creating some lame-ass excuse that Orihime quickly bought. Of course she went around the room, asking if anyone would like to try her lunch. In the end she just had to eat her 'delicious' lunch by herself, which she didn't complain about.

"By the way, Kuchiki-san, sorry for not making it to your party last night," Ryo said to Rukia. Michiru and Chizuru nodded in agreement with Ryo.

Rukia just shook her head and smiled at her friends. "That's okay. I'm just glad you guys tried."

"Oh Kuchiki-san!" Chizuru squealed as she threw her arms around Rukia, "You are so sweet! I just want to undress you and pour honey so I can eat you up—AUGH!"

Tatsuki threw a hard punch at the glasses-wearing lesbian who released her hold on Rukia.

"Speaking of your birthday," Tatsuki swallowed the food that was in her mouth, "I remembered how last night everyone got you a present except for this one bastard that I know."

Ichigo suddenly choked on the sausage he was eating.

Uryuu nodded to Tatsuki's comment. "Yes, you're right. I also know who this 'bastard' is and I expected this person wouldn't forget about buying a present. But I guess I was wrong."

Keigo, who recovered from his injuries, held Rukia's hands in between his. "Oh, Kuchiki-san! I'm sorry Ichigo is such a horrible person. If you ever need a shoulder to cry on, do not be afraid to seek me out!"

Michiru looked around the group. "You mean, Kurosaki-kun was the one who forgot to buy Kuchiki-san a present?"

Orihime nodded, though she wasn't sure whether to smile or frown.

Mizuiro let out a laugh. "Yes. And we all expected Ichigo to be the first one to buy her a gift, or at least the most expensive one. But instead he comes out as a man who forgets about his girlfriend's birthday—"

"She's not my girlfriend," Ichigo mumbled.

Mizuiro shook his head, "No use denying it now, Ichigo," he said with a weird tone that made Ichigo think his friend was on the verge of starting more rumors.

Rukia looked over at Ichigo who was sipping a juice box. He gave her a pleading look which told her that he wanted to keep his present a secret. Suddenly a thought came to mind: lie and make him buy her another Chappy doll as a 'thank you' gift, or embarrass him in front of his friends.

Rukia bit her lower lip to stop herself from laughing maliciously. With a deep breath she decided to go for the former, but with a twist.

"It's okay," Rukia spoke with her fake, innocent tone and used her handkerchief to wipe away some fake tears, "I guess Kurosaki-kun doesn't care about me too much. At least I have wonderful friends like you guys," she choked.

Ichigo gave her a blank stare when Tatsuki suddenly threw a spoon at him. "OW! BITCH! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!" He shouted.

Tatsuki stood up and placed her hands on her hip, "For making Kuchiki cry!"

Ichigo was about to retort but only pouted as he returned to his lunch. And he didn't miss that evil smirk on Rukia's face. _Bitch_, he cursed at her in his thoughts.

After lunch it was another few gruesome hours of lectures and paperwork. Several times Ichigo prayed for a Hollow to appear but it seems that Kami liked to torture him.

When the last bell of the day rung Ichigo quickly stood up and grabbed his bag.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Rukia asked as she slowly shoved her books in her bag.

"I just want to get home," Ichigo snorted.

When Rukia finally got all her stuff, she wrapped the scarf Yuzu knitted for her around her neck, and followed Ichigo out the door. The two walked out of their classroom, out of their school, and into the street.

Ichigo looked at their surrounding and scratched his head. "Hey Rukia."

"Yeah?"

"Why hasn't there been a Hollow around here?" he asked, "I mean, it's been too quiet lately."

Rukia pulled out her spirit phone and pressed several buttons. "I know what you mean. But there's no problem with the phone. I guess the Winter War affected some local Hollows as well." She placed her phone back in her pocket and looked up to see a disgruntle look on Ichigo's face. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll get your fun back in a few days."

Ichigo only mumbled some curses under his breath as they finally arrived at his house.

"Tadaima," they called out.

And Rukia quickly ducked to the side as Isshin came flying out to greet his son. "ICHIGO!"

The said teen grabbed his father's leg and shoved him against the wall. "Don't you ever learn?!"

"Good job my son… I have nothing left to teach you," Isshin mumbled against the wall as he slid down.

Rukia made way to the kitchen where Yuzu was preparing dinner. "Tadaima."

"Okarei nasai!" Yuzu smiled at Rukia, "I'm making some curry tonight. Can you help chop the carrots?"

"Sure! Let me just go upstairs and get changed," Rukia replied as she walked out of the kitchen.

At the same time Ichigo came up in front of them. "Are you sure you trust Rukia with chopping carrots? This girl doesn't know the difference between cold water and hot water."

Rukia glared at him before elbowing him on the side. "Baka mono."

Ichigo rubbed his sore ribs as he watched Rukia running up the stairs. He was about to follow when something smacked his head. "OW! WHAT THE FUCK?!" Ichigo turned around to see his father standing behind him with his hands on his hips.

"How dare you make fun of my delicate third-daughter! It seems I still have to teach you some manner!"

Ichigo punched his father. "Stop with that 'third-daughter' thing! She's not even part of this family!"

Yuzu came out of the kitchen and pouted at her brother, with Isshin mimicking her look next to her, "How mean, oniichan! Rukia-neesan is as much part of this family as you and I."

Ichigo only groaned. Even if he was willing to hit his father, there was no way he could fight against his little sister. "Whatever," he mumbled as he walked to the stairs.

On the way he passed by Karin. "Nice job, Ichi-nii," she smirked.

Ichigo shrugged off the comment as he made way to his room. As soon as he opened the door a lion plushy jumped up and clung onto his face.

"Ichigo!"

"Goddamit, Kon!" Ichigo cried out as he yanked the mod soul off of him. Noticing something was off, he took a good look at Kon and raised an eyebrow. "What the hell are you wearing?"

Kon yanked himself out of Ichigo's grasp and landed on the floor. He dramatically sat on the ground with his stuffed paw raised to wipe away his faux tears. (insert spotlight). "Look at what your sister had done to me while you were away. It was torture. PURE TORTURE! Going on and on with 'Bostafu,' she dressed me up in ten, TEN, different dresses and Karin later used me as a baseball when she played with that Jinta-brat… AH! Ichigo, what are you doing?!" Kon yelled when Ichigo suddenly grabbed him out of the spotlight and walked back downstairs.

"Oi, Karin," he called out, "If you're going out then take Kon with you!"

Karin walked up and grabbed the panicking Kon. "No problem. I'm going out after dinner so I'll need company," she said with an evil look.

Kon started to scream as he struggled in Karin's hold. "ICHIGO! HOW COULD YOU?!"

Ichigo walked back upstairs and bumped into Rukia who was coming out of the bathroom with new clothes on.

"What was that all about?" Rukia asked.

Ichigo shrugged, "Just getting rid of an annoying 'Bostafu.'"

He left Rukia and walked back to his room to grab a new set of clothes to wear after taking a shower.

--

"Itadakimas!"

The Kurosaki family and Rukia dug into the curry that Yuzu made for dinner. And Ichigo wanted nothing more than to have a quiet dinner but his father just wasn't generous.

Isshin, who was sitting at the head of the table, leaned closer to the left where Ichigo was sitting. "Psst! Ichigo!" he whispered so none of the girls could hear him.

"What?" Ichigo asked, obviously annoyed by his father's disturbance.

"How are things going with Rukia-chan?"

Ichigo raised one of his eyebrows and stared at his father. "What are you talking about old man?"

Wearing his mischievous grin, Isshin leaned even closer and whispered into his son's ear, "I mean how are things in bed? Are you using those condoms I got you? Although I wouldn't mind getting some grandkids now—UGH!"

Isshin's words got cut off when the blushing Ichigo shoved a spoonful of hot curry into his father's mouth. "You pervert! Why can't you just shut up?!"

Rukia and the twins looked up from their conversation to see Ichigo trying to choke his father. The older woman sighed as she pulled on the enraged teenager's arm. "Ichigo, calm down or else you might really kill your father."

Isshin swallowed the food inside his mouth and ran to Rukia to hug her. "Oh, my beautiful third-daughter! I knew you'd be the only one who actually cares about me!"

"Goddamit old man!" Ichigo yelled as he pushed his father away from Rukia, who was sitting next to him.

Isshin quickly released his hold and ran towards the poster of his wife. "Oh, love of my life! You have blessed me by sending our beautiful Rukia-chan into our home to take care of me from our estrange son! Now I can't wait for the two to marry so that we may fill this house with our grandchildren!"

No longer able to listen to Isshin's rants, the blushing Ichigo threw his spoon at his fahter's head where it hit… hard.

Yuzu quickly walked over to her father to make sure he wasn't dead as Ichigo returned to his dinner.

"Why are you so flustered?" Karin asked with a smirk.

Ichigo only glared as he grabbed a spoon to eat the rest of the food in his bowl.

Just then Rukia's phone started ringing. She dug into her dress and pulled it out. Ichigo stood up, anxious written on his face in hopes it would be a Hollow. He waited for a response before running up to grab his shinigami badge in his room.

Rukia looked at the screen and sadly sighed as she shook her head to Ichigo. "It's Urahara."

Ichigo cursed as he took the phone and answered it. "What do you want?!"

"_Ara! I thought I was calling Kuchiki-san!_"

"This is Rukia's cell."

"_Then why is Kurosaki-kun answering it?_" Urahara asked in a singing tone.

"Are you stupid or did you forget Rukia lives at my house?" Ichigo answered with a questioned.

There was a pause on the other line.

"_Oh! Yes, that explains it. Although maybe you two were sleeping together and I just—"_

Ichigo quickly interrupted before Urahara finished the last sentence, which he kinda figured out. "Do you need to talk to Rukia?"

"_No. I actually have to talk to Isshin!"_

"Then why the hell did you call this phone in the first place, dumbass?!" Ichigo yelled into the phone. And before Urahara could answer, the enraged orange head tossed Rukia's phone to his father. "The idiot wants to talk to you," he muttered as he went back to his dinner.

"Hello? This is the handsome Kurosaki Isshin talking," Isshin spoke in the phone. "…What?... No way! Really? Ara, well we must do something about that now shouldn't we…" Isshin talked to Urahara and Ichigo could sense that the two ex-shinigamis were planning something mischievous from the tone of their voice.

Rukia leaned towards Ichigo and whispered into his ear, "What are they talking about?"

Ichigo shook his head as he replied, "I don't know but one things for sure, I'm not going to like it."

* * *

What might they be planning? Something interesting might happen later on so wait and see what comes up in the next chapter!


	6. Finally Some Fun!

**Author's Note: Here is the last part of my four-part release. It starts off a bit funny then interesting, then fluffy. Hope you like it! It is over 4000 words...**

**And I'm not setting a set date for when the next chapter is coming out. I don't know when I'll get sick again...hopefully never. But it will be sometime this week.**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach...Sorry

* * *

**FYI: **I uploaded **_FOUR _**chapters today so check them out!

* * *

Chapter 5: Finally Some Fun

* * *

Ichigo woke up that morning feeling more tired than usual. He let out a loud yawn as he scratched his head.

"GOOD MORNING ICHI—oof!"

As soon as Isshin entered the room, Ichigo grabbed his father by the face and shoved him to the ground.

"Goddamit old man, can't you just wake me up like a normal person?"

Though he was twitching a little Isshin chuckled as he mumbled through Ichigo's hand, "Haha. My son, you truly have become an amazing warrior. I no longer have anything to worry about when the time comes for me to release you from this nest."

Ichigo only sighed as he pushed himself off his father. "Whatever, I'm going to go get ready," he said as he walked to the bathroom.

Several minutes later Ichigo walked downstairs in his school uniform and greeted his family along with Rukia and a grumpy Kon. They took some time to eat breakfast before rushing out the door to school.

But before they could take more than a few steps, Isshin came rushing out the door.

"ICHIGOOO!" The father jumped into the air and landed his feet on Ichigo's back.

"EUGH!" Ichigo cried as he fell face forward.

Isshin stepped off of Ichigo and crossed his arms over his chest as he laughed evilly. "HAHA! You must always keep your guard up son!"

Ichigo jumped up and kicked his father from the side. "What the fuck is wrong with you?! Can't you just give it a rest?!"

Isshin popped right back up and started his fake waterworks. "My son is so evil! He doesn't even trust his father anymore!" he whined as he grabbed Rukia into a hug, "My third-daughter! Please help fill in this void that my son so painfully left in me!"

Ichigo could feel several veins popping in his head as he watched his father's overly-affectionate ways. Rukia was also feeling very violated as Isshin rubbed his beardy chin against her cheek. Taking no more of this, Ichigo walked over and yanked his father's grip off of Rukia. "Will you stop that?! What do you want anyways?!"

Isshin stood straight up with his hands on his hips. "Haha! No need to get jealous over Rukia-chan." Ichigo glared at his father with his fist raised up. Isshin winked at his son as he continued, "I need you to go by Kisuke today afterschool," he said, then paused as he eyed Rukia, "And take Rukia-chan with you!" He called back as he ran back into the clinic.

The two stood next to each other, staring at the retreating form of Kurosaki Isshin. Rukia looked over and raised an eyebrow. "What was that all about?"

Ichigo scratched the back of his head and shrugged. "Don't care. Com'on, we got to get going or else we'll be late."

On the way they met up with Mizuiro and made it to school with a few minutes to spare. First period started and Ichigo was once again bored with the lectures from his teacher. He kept going on and on about this and that, etc. Ichigo stared out the window again, the field still slightly covered in snow.

Suddenly…

_Hollow! Hollow! Hollow!_

Ichigo's shinigami badge suddenly went off, screeching as it kept jumping up and down on the desk. With a huge smirk, Ichigo grabbed his badge and stood up.

"Sensei! I need to go to the restroom!" He yelled as he made towards the door.

In the corner of his eye Ichigo saw Uryuu and Chad getting ready to follow him but he glared at them, telling them to stay put because he was going to have all the fun fighting this Hollow that hadn't been coming up for several days.

Getting the message the two sat down and Ichigo ran out the door with his sensei yelling at him from the room.

Rukia only looked on and smirked, noticing the excitement in Ichigo's reiatsu. She shrugged, returning to her drawings.

--

"EUUUURRHHGGGG!"

Ichigo yelled as he brought down Zangetsu towards the Hollow. The pig-like thing noticed Zangetsu coming towards him and quickly moved to the side.

But Ichigo was quick.

Although he couldn't swing his Zanpakutou fully at the new position of the Hollow's mask, he was able to slightly shift to the side and cut off the Hollow's left arm.

The Hollow screeched loudly as it stepped off to the side, lost its footing and fell onto a field of snow. The Shinigami Substitute landed right next to the Hollow and smirked.

Ichigo grabbed the wrapping at the end of the hilt and twirled Zangetsu high above him as he walked closer to the Hollow. "I gotta say, I'm quite glad you decided to come up today. You see I've been pretty bored and Zangetsu here has been getting a bit cranky with me."

The Hollow roared as it painfully stood up. He took one step back and lifted his right hoof. Ichigo shunpoed to the side and jumped high in the air, grabbing the handle of Zangetsu as he pointed the tip down towards the Hollow's mask. Zangetsu cracked through the white mask, causing the Hollow to scream in pain as it stumbled backwards, quickly deteriorating.

Ichigo landed on the ground, satisfied with the scream coming from the Hollow as it disappeared. The straps quickly wrapped around the blade and Ichigo swung it over his shoulder. He turned around and smiled widely.

"Man, that felt good!" he cried as he stretched his arms.

Ichigo looked to the side and noticed the spirit of a young man, hiding by a bush.

"Eh? Who are you?" Ichigo asked as he walked over. He brought out his Zanpakutou again, which scared the young spirit.

"Please don't kill me!" the soul begged as it crawled away.

Ichigo smiled, well too used to this reaction now. "Hey, I'm not here to kill you. Besides, you're already dead."

The soul whimpered as he slowly lifted his head. "Then what do you want?"

Ichigo pointed the end of the hilt towards the soul's head as he spoke, "I'm a shinigami and I'm only here to do a soul burial. This will send you to Soul Society where souls can relax and live a peaceful life. And no Hollows like that one just now will ever come after you again."

The soul looked at Ichigo for a second and shifted his gaze towards the ground. "Must I go?"

Ichigo's smile turned into a frown. "What?"

"Well," the soul rubbed the back of his neck, "I really don't want to go."

It was then Ichigo noticed a long chain coming out of the soul. He followed its direction and noticed it went past the trees and bushes. "Where is your chain leading off to?"

The soul grabbed the chain coming out of his chest and fingered it. He slowly got up and led Ichigo to the side of the park where people were sitting on benches. Ichigo noticed that one particular person had a chain wrapped around her chest.

"Who is she?" Ichigo asked, obviously figuring out that the soul was an 'obsessed spirit,' a soul that binds itself to a living person.

The soul gave a handsome smile as he looked at the sad woman. "Her name is Hanako, a good friend of mine since high school. We used to be the best of friends…"

Ichigo turned around and saw the soul blushing as he scratched his black hair. "Well, even though we bickered a lot, I really liked her."

"Did she like you?" Ichigo asked, not really sure why he was suddenly interested.

The soul blushed deeper and looked up, smiling to show off. "Yup! All of our family and friends knew we liked each other. But…" the soul's face darkened as he looked at his feet, "I died a few months ago without even getting the chance to confess my feelings."

A sudden silence enclosed on the two.

Ichigo looked back at the woman who was sighing for the nth time. "She seems sad."

"Yeah. She's been depressed with my death and has been liked that ever since," the soul said as he sat down, looking at the woman sitting several yards away. "I feel horrible for taking away her smile."

Ichigo sighed as he shifted Zangetsu in his grasp. "Sorry to hear about that. But I have to send you off to Soul Society." He looked down at the man who was now looking back at him, "You should let her move on."

The soul sighed as he slowly nodded his head. He stood up and faced Ichigo directly in the eye. He was a good looking man, possibly around his early twenties, dark hair, and a little bit taller than Ichigo.

As Ichigo lifted his Zanpakutou to perform the burial, the soul suddenly stepped back.

"Wait a sec."

"What?"

The soul looked around his surrounding for a second and scratched his arm. "Well, can you do me a favor?"

"What is it?" Ichigo asked, raising an eyebrow and lowered his Zanpakutou.

The soul blushed again. "Well, if you go by the river, there is this boulder that looks like a heart next to the third bridge. Underneath it I dug up a small hole and hidden a small note in it. Do you think you can deliver it to Hanako?"

Ichigo rubbed his chin for a second and smiled. "Sure. That's the least I can do."

"Thanks."

Ichigo shrugged his shoulder with a cocky grin. "No problem."

The young man eyed Ichigo up and down and smirked. "Let me give you a piece of advise," the soul said with a blushing grin, "If you have someone you like then hurry up and confess to her."

Ichigo blushed. "What the hell are you talking about?!"

The soul laughed. "Haha! Sorry if I embarrassed you. It just looked like you have someone."

"Shuttup," Ichigo said as he tried to hide his blush with his hand.

The soul smiled and straightened up. "Okay, let's do this."

Ichigo lightly pressed the end of the hilt on the soul's forehead. A bright light shot out from where the soul was standing. But before the light completely engulfed the soul, he opened his eyes and smiled. "My name is Izumi."

"I'm Ichigo."

The light completely took over Izumi and disappeared into the ground. Soon a Hell's Butterfly came out. Ichigo followed the butterfly with his eyes and saw it going up to the heavens. He smiled as he looked back to the woman, still staring off into nothing. Without a moment to lose, Ichigo rushed to his body, hidden in behind a group of the trees, got in, and ran towards the river.

--

A young woman with dark brown hair wiped away a falling tear and looked back at the snow-covered field where several kids were running around.

With a long depressing sigh, Hanako stood up, hugged her coat tighter over her body, and turned around. Taking a few steps she walked around the bench and towards the sidewalk.

"HANAKO-SAN! JOTTO MATTE GUDO SAI!"

The startled woman turned around and saw a young teenager with shocking orange hair running up to her, waving his hand madly to get her attention.

When the teen finally reach her, he bent down and huffed, trying to catch his breath.

"C-can I help you?" she asked.

Ichigo stood up and choked as he spoke, "Yeah… sorry—hah—you don't know me—"

"No, I don't."

"But I know Izumi-san."

Hanako took in a sharp breath as her eyes widened. "What?"

Ichigo rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a dirt-covered letter.

Without a word Hanako slowly took the letter and pulled out its content. Carefully she unfolded a small piece of paper and read what was written on it.

Several times she gasped; other times she let out either a small smile or a sad frown. By the time she reached the middle tears formed and her clutch on the paper tightened. Ichigo only watch on, not daring to say a word. He didn't even move when Hanako fell on her knees and cried into her hands.

Ichigo scratched his head and looked to the side. "Izumi-san wanted me to give you this letter. He's sad he couldn't get it to you in time."

"Thank you," Hanako choked as she kept crying and her body trembled.

--

"Why were you so late?"

"Hmm?" Ichigo crossed his hands behind the back of his head as he looked at Rukia walking besides him. "What did you say?"

"I asked why it took you so long to kill one Hollow."

Ichigo shrugged. "I was helping an 'obsessed spirit' let go of the person he was chained to."

Rukia smiled and patted Ichigo on the back. "I'm proud of you."

The two kept walking until they reached Urahara's store. Like usual the two didn't knock and just slid open the shoji door.

Ichigo used one of his hands to cup the side of his mouth as he shouted, "Oi! Urahara!"

The man popped his head out from the side with his usual fan over his mouth. "Ara! And what might bring my favorite couple to my store?"

Ichigo walked up and landed a hard punch at the shopkeeper. "Stop your stupid ranting and tell us why we're here."

Ururu patted Urahara's back to comfort him as Yoruichi walked up to greet the two shinigamis. "Yo! How did school go?"

Ichigo only grunted while Rukia looked away.

Yoruichi laughed as she curled her index finger to indicate to the two to follow her. Ichigo and Rukia did as they were told. They soon climbed down the ladder to Urahara's underground training room.

"What's going on?" Rukia asked as they kept walking.

Suddenly Ichigo and Rukia felt a sharp pain entering their head.

"WOAH!" Ichigo cried as his shinigami form suddenly jumped out of his body. Rukia fell right next to him. They looked up to see Urahara laughing by himself, with his cane pointing out towards them. "What the hell was that about, you jackass?!"

Ichigo jumped up to the laughing shopkeeper, fist raised high when Yoruichi flash stepped next to him and grabbed him.

"Baka, there's no time!" she sneered, pulling Ichigo by the arm she was still holding.

"Wait a sec," Ichigo cried, "What do you man 'there's no time?' Where are we going—"

Just then the senkaimon appeared before them. Ichigo looked up, still being dragged by Yoruichi towards the shoji doors with Rukia calmly following them. Suddenly the doors slid open and Renji jumped down.

"Yo!" He greeted.

"Renji?! What's going on?" Ichigo asked.

When they were but a few feets away from the red head, Yoruichi gave a hard yank and Ichigo fell forward, tumbling towards the senkaimon and falling inside. "He's all yours!" she cried.

"Hai." Renji bowed.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Ichigo yelled at the purple-haired woman who was smirking.

Renji signaled Rukia to jump into the portal, which she did, as he grabbed Ichigo by the collar of his haori and led him fully through the portal.

Before Ichigo realized it, the three shinigamis were now in Soul Society.

Ichigo looked at his surrounding and started to whine. "What the hell are we doing here?"

Renji smirked. "I'd tell ya but that'll ruin the surprise," he said. Then he turned to face Rukia, "I have to escort our orange-top to Yamamoto-sotaicho now. Matusmoto and Hinamori are at the 'Red Threads' enjoying some snacks so you should go and visit them."

Rukia sweetly smiled at her friend (much to Ichigo's displeasure), "Thanks, I'll do that."

With that she went her separate ways from the boys.

Rukia walked towards the Red Threads, a small store in Sereitei which sold small items like brushes, to tea, and to sakes for late night parties (which consisted mostly of the eleventh division).

"Konichiwa!" Rukia greeted her two friends who were already drinking their tea and snacking at some crackers.

"Rukia!" the two jumped up and ran towards their petite friend.

MEANTIME…

"Kurosaki Ichigo."

The said man bowed at the old sotaicho in front of him. "Hai," he responded, still feeling a bit awkward.

Yamamoto gave a slight nod as he continued, "Are you aware as to why you've been called here today?"

Ichigo straightened up and looked around the room. Currently he was standing in the middle of the room, facing Yamamoto, while the other captains were standing on either side of him. Ichigo looked back at the old(est) man and shook his head. "I'm afraid not."

"…I see. So your father hasn't said anything?"

Again Ichigo shook his head as he answered, "No sir."

"Hmmm…" Yamamoto let out a deep breath as he eyed the orange head in front of him. "Well, we had summoned you here today to speak with you of your role within Soul Society."

The sotaicho paused for a moment, allowing the words to sink in. But Ichigo only got more confused with each passing second. Without saying anything, the Shinigami Substitute raised an eyebrow and looked confusingly at the old man.

Yamamoto let out a small cough, obviously a bit peeved at Ichigo's inability to figure things out. "What I'm trying to say is that we would like you to become an _official _officer in Gotei 13."

"You mean… join Soul Society?" Ichigo asked.

"No, not exactly," Yamamoto replied, "You will continue living in your world and live out the same duty that you had been doing there. But this time we want to give you an official rank within the Gotei 13. So when you visit Soul Society, it will mostly be to attend important captain's meetings, and you'll be officially recognized as an officer with all the benefits following."

Ichigo couldn't help but grin at this new bit of information, and he could tell, from the slight change in Byakuya's reiatsu pattern, that the Sixth Division taicho wasn't all too pleased with this new change.

"Do you have any objections, Kurosaki Ichigo?"

Kurosaki _taicho_ shook his head. "Absolutely none."

Yamamoto nodded, pleased with how smoothly things were progressing. "Excellent. Now that we got your approval, the rest of the taichos and I shall continue our discussion of your role along with your payment."

Ichigo snapped to attention at the end. "What was that last word?"

"Payment?"

"Yes…"

The commander-general lightly chuckled as he stroked his long beard. "Every shinigami in Soul Society are paid and you'll be no different. Mayuri taicho will see to it that your payment is in form of your world's."

Ichigo looked over to the Twelfth Division taicho who stared back with a mischievous grin. Ichigo slightly stuttered and returned his gaze to Yamamoto. "I understand."

"Then you may leave."

Ichigo gave one last bow before walking out of the room. When he closed the door Renji jumped out of nowhere and startled Ichigo when he landed next to him.

"AH! You bastard! How long have you been standing there?!" Ichigo cried out as Renji threw his arm over his friend's shoulder and led him out of the building.

"Since I dropped you off," Renji replied with a grin, "And I'm guessing you took the offer that Yamamoto-sotaicho offered?"

Ichigo nodded. "I did… but how did you know?"

Renji shrugged, "Kuchiki taicho told me."

Once the two were outside the First Division building, Renji stopped and removed his hold on Ichigo. "I forgot I still have paperwork due today," Renji groaned. He looked at Ichigo and sighed. "Sorry but looks like I can't see you and Rukia off."

Ichigo shrugged as he focused to find Rukia's reiatsu. "Don't worry too much about it. I'll see you later."

Renji waved his hand as he shunpoed back to his division. When Ichigo finally found Rukia's reiatsu, Ichigo also shunpoed, excited to tell her the news.

Ichigo jumped from rooftop to rooftop until he finally landed in front of a small shop that looked like a food stall. Scratching his head, Ichigo looked up to read the sign that said: Red Threads. He knew right away he was at the right place, remembering Renji and Rukia's conversation a little while ago. So the soon-to-be-taicho walked towards the door and slid it open.

"Welcome!" the owner warmly greeted Ichigo who smiled back. Ichigo soon made way to a long hallway at the right, hidden slightly by curtains. It led off to several private rooms where customers could get some privacy. Ichigo slowly walked forward, carefully peering through the curtains to each room to look for Rukia.

"WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!"

Ichigo's head snapped up upon hearing Rukia's voice screaming across the store. He quickly, but quietly, walked towards one of the rooms at the end of the hallway. Ichigo didn't know why he did it but he peeked in from the side and strained his ear to hear what was going on.

"What are you so embarrassed about?" Matsumoto asked teasingly, "I'm your friend so obviously I'm curious about your sex life with Ichigo."

Rukia blushed heavily (not to mention Ichigo almost stumbled inside from the sudden comment by the busty-woman) and looked away. "Like I've been saying, we are _not_ in _that_ kind of relationship."

Matsumoto eyed at her friend for a second and suddenly burst out laughing. "Deny it all you want Rukia but the truth is clear as that blush of yours. Right Momo?"

While Rukia brought her hands up, Hinamoro lightly giggled as she set down her tea cup. "I didn't know you were this shy, Kuchiki-san."

"Oh please, it's only like this in the beginning. Soon she'll be used to being in love," Matsumoto waved her hand.

"And how might you know so well?" Rukia asked with a glare.

Matsumoto smiled back… but then her gaze saddened as she spoke. "I know of two people who loved each so much but never confessed their love to each other. In the end, the guy disappeared, ruining whatever could have happened between them. She ended up regretting so many things…"

Suddenly Rukia and Hinamori forgot about Matsumoto's previous comments and looked at their friend, knowing full well who she was talking about.

"Matsumoto-san—"

"Oh well! No use crying about it now!" Matsumoto interrupted through Hinamori's words. She lifted her glass and giggled. "Let us girls stick together. Screw all men in every world!"

Hinamori gave a small smile while Rukia lifted her cup for her friend. "Hear hear."

"You guys are stupid," Ichigo snorted as he finally walked in to see all three startled faces looking at him.

Rukia was the first one to recover. "Ichigo! When did you get here?"

"Just now," Ichigo replied, leaning against the door frame, "I'm here to pick you up so we can go home."

"Oh!" Rukia jumped out of her seat, took one last sip of her tea, and walked towards Ichigo. She turned around and waved at her two friends. "We'll see you guys later!"

Matsumoto and Hinamoi waved back. "We'll go visit you guys too! Oh, and Ichigo!"

"What?" Ichigo turned around to look at Matsumoto.

The busty fukutaicho grinned as she leaned back against her seat, "Don't get too aggressive in bed or it might scare Rukia away."

Ichigo blushed heavily and glared at the woman in front of him. "I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT?!" Ichigo grabbed Rukia's wrist and led her out the door with Matsumoto's laughs still ringing in his ears.

Without another word the flustered shinigamis made way back to the Urahara's store where their bodies were still 'sleeping.' After slipping back in, the two bid farewell to Urahara, Yoruichi and staff.

Ichigo looked outside and sighed. It was already dark which meant Yuzu might have already finished dinner. The two silently walked to the Kurosaki Clinic, thinking of something to talk about.

"Ne Ichigo?"

"Hmm?"

"How much did you hear back at the Red Threads."

Ichigo shrugged as he kept walking, not bothering to look at his friend. "If you're talking about Matsumoto's 'friend,' then yeah, I heard it."

"Oh…" Rukia paused for a moment to think. She suddenly looked up at him with a worried expression. "Ichigo, I—"

"Don't worry," Ichigo interrupted. He reached down and grabbed Rukia's hand, interlacing their fingers affectionately, "I promise we're not going to regret anything."

Rukia blushed heavily, but after taking one look at their joined hands, she smiled—a real, beautiful smile—and looked up at Ichigo. "You're right."

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Hehe! I hope you guys liked the way I ended this chapter. I do feel bad for Matsumoto but things will get better for her later.

Check out the next chapter which will include the next step to Ichigo and Rukia's relationship... n when I mean 'next step' i mean something like lemon... lol anyways, stay tune for the next chapter!


	7. Next Step

**Author's Note: Yay! I'm actually uploading in time! And I'm putting up three chapters today (when originally I only promised one). This fic was suppose to be rated T but seriously, who doesn't want to read something rated 'M' for Ichigo X Rukia? lol**

**This chapter is the start of moving the story in a fast paste. From here on out, read carefully because I'm giving small indicators of how much time had elapsed since the previous chapter or since the end of the war. So it might seem like the story is moving too fast but I'm defending my reason with what I said in the prologue: I want to post this fic. before Kubo changes the real story of Bleach too much. Sorry if this bothers you.**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach...Sorry

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**FYI:** adult content below! I'm giving you guys another warning!

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Chapter 6: The Next Step

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Ichigo and Rukia were sitting on Ichigo's bed, each reading their own book, with the sun setting outside the window. The house was quiet since everyone else decided to go visit Urahara.

"Ouch!"

Ichigo looked up and saw a small drop of blood falling down Rukia's index finger. "What did you do?"

"Paper-cut," she pouted.

"Idiot," Ichigo mumbled. Rukia was about fight back when Ichigo suddenly grabbed her wrist. What happened next was something Rukia didn't expect.

He lifted her hand and gently placed it in between his lips. Rukia gasped when she felt Ichigo's tongue pressed against her finger and started to suck away the blood. She could feel herself blushing from his intimate actions.

Ichigo pulled away when he could no longer taste the blood coming out. "Seriously, you're so careless sometimes," he smirked.

Rukia didn't respond. She was too flustered, but there was also a strange, warm feeling spreading throughout her body. Ichigo got up and walked to his desk. He opened his first drawer and took out a small Band-Aid.

"How will you ever survive without me?" He sarcastically asked as he sat back on the bed and started to wrap up Rukia's finger.

Rukia looked at his face as he gently held her hand and took care of her cut. A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. For the past few days, ever since returning from Soul Society, Ichigo had been displaying a lot more affection to her. Afterschool they would take long routes home, with their hands brushing against each other until Ichigo finally mustered up the courage to intertwine their finger. And sometimes Ichigo would let Rukia have her fun fighting against a Hollow while he watched from the sidelines, often times holding onto their ice cream.

_So this is what it feels like to be in a relationship…_

When he finally finished wrapping her finger Ichigo looked up to see her smiling at him. "What?"

Rukia only shook her head. Slowly she lifted her hand away from Ichigo's grasp and traced her fingers over his cheek. "It's weird."

"W-what is?" Ichigo stuttered, trying to hide his blush.

"This feeling," she answered, "It's weird how it spreads throughout my body whenever you're near me. It feels like this gigai is my real body… that even such a small pain like this paper-cut can make me feel so alive."

Ichigo grabbed her hand that was still on his face and brought it forward to kiss the inside of her palm. The two looked intently into each others eyes and suddenly a weird feeling passed by them both. Ichigo then suddenly grabbed the back of her head with his other hand and pulled Rukia's face onto his, smacking their lips together.

The two moaned as they felt their lips quickly responding to each other. Ichigo teased Rukia's lip with his tongue, begging for entrance, which she gave him almost immediately. Rukia let out a small gasp when she felt his tongue. It felt different in her mouth than when it was pressed against her finger.

Ichigo took his time to explore the inside of her mouth, learning the structure and the location of each tooth. He tilted his head to the side, and as he shoved deeper, Rukia felt her body also getting pushed back. She then landed on the bed with Ichigo on top of her.

Rukia brought her other hand up and grabbed the back of Ichigo's head to pull him closer to her. Ichigo obliged to her bidding, but after a few more seconds of kissing he slowly pulled away to take a breather.

Ichigo looked down to see a flustered Rukia smiling at him as she took deep breaths. With a smile he pressed his forehead against hers as they breathed in each other's scent.

"How far are you willing to go tonight?" he whispered with his cocky grin.

Rukia smiled back when their noses brushed against each other. "All the way," she whispered.

Ichigo looked into her eyes to see 'truth' written everywhere. He took in a deep breath and readied himself for what he was about to say next.

"I love you."

"I love you, too," Rukia quickly responded.

As soon as those words escaped her lips, Ichigo delved down into Rukia's mouth again. She wrapped both her arms around his neck in hopes to pull him closer than he already was. Ichigo gave one last suck on her lower lip as he moved to kiss her cheek, her jaw line, and finally her neck.

Rukia gasped when Ichigo started to nip on her skin, then sooth the pain with his tongue. And when he breathed against her neck, it created goosebumps throughout her body. Never had she felt anything so intense as this.

Ichigo's made his way up her neck and he started to suck on Rukia's earlobe which got her moaning. He smirked as he whispered in her ear, "If you want me to stop you better do it now or else I won't let you go later."

When Ichigo lifted his head to look into Rukia's eyes, she smirked back and forcibly pulled his shirt over his head.

"I'll take that as a 'no,'" Ichigo smiled as he went back to sucking her neck.

Rukia didn't know where to roam first. Sure she had seen Ichigo's muscular body before, but it was different seeing him _completely_ bare just for her. Not to mention the fact that she was being given the access to freely touch him. Her hands quickly glazed across his chest and made their way to his muscular back, stroking every skin in the way. Ichigo kept shivering from her touch and didn't want them to stop. He used one of his hands to gently stroke one of her arms before making way to unbutton her blouse.

As the first top buttons came off Ichigo looked down when something caught his eyes. He could see the necklace he bought her, laying off to the side, glinting from the small amount of sun shining in from the window. He traced over the pattern with his fingers and smiled.

"You still wearing this thing?" he asked.

Rukia smiled and nodded. "I never took it off since you placed it around my neck."

Ichigo lightly placed a kiss on her forehead before slowly returning to kissing her mouth.

Once he got all the buttons off, Ichigo carefully slid his hand in to part the blouse. When his hand lightly brushed against her breast, Rukia took in a sharp breath as she arched her back from the sudden sensation that spread across her body.

Ichigo's breathing started to get heavier and he could feel his heart pumping blood in a much faster pace...down there.

"Rukia…" he moaned as he started to move his lips towards her shoulder and her collarbone.

Rukia's also began to breathe faster to accommodate for her racing heart. She placed small butterfly kisses on his forehead as Ichigo placed both hands on her shoulders to pull the blouse off completely. Rukia had to shift a bit in order to help him take off the damn thing. The room was getting immensely hot so when Ichigo threw the blouse on the floor, Rukia sighed in relief, welcoming the cool air that was now touching her skin.

Watching her squirm underneath him made him grin as he lowered himself on top of her again and continued his kisses. He felt Rukia slightly tugging on his orange spikes but it wasn't painful…yet.

"Ichigo," Rukia groaned, "You're—haah—taking too long…mmmh."

Ichigo smiled widely when Rukia moaned at the end of her talk as soon as he brushed his hand over her breast again. He then noticed that she was looking up at him with a serious look, even though there was a cute blush on her face.

He let out a small laugh as he kissed her already-swollen lips. "Fine," he whispered, moving his lips against hers as he spoke, "I'm going to take everything so don't you complain later."

Rukia slightly glared at him. "You talk too much."

"I'm just stubborn like you," he replied as he deepened the kiss.

Just then Rukia felt him tugging at her skirt, trying to pull it off… but he was having a difficult time.

"Goddamit!" Ichigo exclaimed as he lifted his head away from her to look down at the annoying skirt that was refusing to come off.

Thinking he was taking too long Rukia decided to help. She used her hands to unzip the side of her dress and lifted her butt so Ichigo could slide the skirt off.

She took one look at him and smiled. "Ichigo?"

"What?"

"You have too much clothes on," she said as she pushed him on his back and sat on top of him, legs on either side of his hips. As soon as she saw his face flash shock, she leaned down and started to nip at his neck.

Ichigo let out a small growl from the back of his throat. Not only was Rukia attacking his neck like he did to hers, but her bra-covered breasts were also rubbing against his chest, making him feel a lot warmer. Rukia also moaned against his neck as she felt her underwear getting wetter. Just sitting in such a position was sending her senses everywhere. And it didn't help when Ichigo decided to run his hands up and down her legs.

Rukia, who was leaving small butterfly kisses along his collar bone, gasped as she felt Ichigo's calloused hands rubbing against her skin. She leaned forward and rested her head in the crook of his neck, gasping for breath as Ichigo kept massaging her legs. Feeling more confident, Ichigo slowly moved his hands to her inner thighs, kneading the skin as he kissed her shoulders.

No longer able to control herself, Rukia sat up and turned away. Ichigo was about to ask what was wrong but his question soon got answered when she started to unzip his pants. It was a good thing too since it was feeling too tight as it was. He had to lift his body off the bed to allow Rukia to pull off his pants.

"Ichigo?"

The orange head lifted his head a little to look at Rukia who called him. "What?"

She grinned at him as she pointed to the bump between his legs. "May I ask what you're so excited about?" she teasingly asked.

Ichigo blushed and looked away. Rukia slowly crawled forward to level their faces. She was still grinning as she slowly lowered her body on top of his. The two gasped when their hips collided against each other.

Taking a second to breathe, Rukia looked down at their touching body that was only separated by the small amount of fabric they were still wearing. Even though she wanted Ichigo in her right there and now, she wanted to feel that jolt of pleasure again.

Ichigo was having difficulty breathing once he felt her dampness against his crotch. His eyes rolled back while his hands were still busy stroking her legs. He loved how silky they felt. But just as he was about to change position, he felt her lightly lifting her body away from him.

With much strain Ichigo opened his eyes. "What are you doing?" he whispered with a husky voice.

Rukia only smiled at him as she kissed him. When Ichigo responded she pushed her hips down onto his and gasped louder upon feeling the shock running through her body again. She shut her eyes tightly, no longer kissing as she continued doing this.

At first Ichigo wasn't sure what she was doing but when he felt her jamming herself down at him, he quickly caught on. And since Rukia was no longer kissing him he grabbed the back of her head and guided it to rest on the crook of his neck as he pushed up to meet her in the air.

The two kept grinding their hips together as if nothing was standing in their way. While Rukia was still moaning and gasping for breath by his neck, Ichigo shoved one of his hands down her underwear and roughly squeezed one side of her ass.

"Ichigo!" Rukia gasped as she kept grinding her hips against his.

Then he did the unthinkable: Ichigo slowly dug his hand deeper into her underwear and slightly grazed his fingers over her wet lips.

"Ah!" Rukia yelped when she felt her womanhood getting violated by his fingers as their hips met.

Ichigo only groaned in response as he used his other hand to unclip the bra that was still covering her breast. As soon as the clips came apart, Rukia sat up and helped pull them off, throwing it to the floor that consisted of their clothes except for her underwear and his boxers.

Ichigo looked up to see Rukia's upper body completely bare for him to see. His face was heating up like crazy. This was but the second time he's seen a woman's chest, although he really didn't see much of Yoruichi…not that he wanted to anyways. Still, it was kinda weird looking at a 'friend' whom you love, naked in front of you. Taking his hand out of her underwear, he placed both his hands on her sides and smiled.

Rukia smirked back and asked, "Like what you see?"

"Very," Ichigo responded and quickly flipped their position over so that now he was on top of her.

At first Rukia quietly squealed from surprise but her voice got cut off when Ichigo quickly placed his lips over hers again, tongues immediately lashing out against each other. She closed her eyes and grabbed his orange hair to pull him closer to deepen the kiss. It amazed her how, even in such an intimate moment, the two were too stubborn to let the other take complete control. Rukia stopped responding and started to gasp when she felt Ichigo's hands starting to knead her breast.

When Ichigo noticed Rukia was no longer responding to his kisses, he decided to keep his lips busy by trailing kisses down towards her breast. He looked at one of the perked nipples and gently licked it. At that moment he felt Rukia's entire body shivering underneath him.

Rukia tugged on his hair harder when she felt his tongue on her nipple. It was an amazing feeling that she never knew existed. Then she felt Ichigo's entire mouth covering over the front of her breast and flicking his tongue against the same nipple that was now inside him. Rukia moaned loudly, trying hard to breathe. But Ichigo didn't give her a chance as he started to suck on her breast, licking at the same time, while his hand was busy kneading the other, neglected breast.

Ichigo was still resting between Rukia's legs and he could feel her dampness increasing against him. It was even crazier when she tightly wrapped her legs around his hips in hope to steady her body. He took this chance to start grinding their hips again.

Rukia made weird, but sensual, gasping noises with each push. And Ichigo could feel his erection becoming almost unbearable.

Not waiting another moment, Ichigo sat up, unwrapping Rukia's legs, and quickly pulled his boxers off. Rukia looked down and stared at his huge erection that was throbbing to go inside her. She couldn't help but blush.

Ichigo caught her staring and, although he was slightly embarrassed, he smirked. "See something you like?" he sarcastically asked.

Rukia looked up at him and smiled. "Very," she quoted him.

Ichigo let out a small laugh as he slowly bent down, tugging on her underwear. Getting the message, Rukia took a deep breath before lifting her hips to allow Ichigo to easily slip her underwear off.

Rukia blushed intensely when she caught Ichigo staring at her in such a vulnerable state. His eyes were full of hunger, and she knew what he wanted to do. So Rukia readied herself by slightly shifting in the bed to allow him more access to her womanhood. And Ichigo quickly took the chance given to him.

Rukia arched her back and gasped once Ichigo's tongue licked between her folds. Her mind was running laps and she could barely stop her screams from coming out as Ichigo kept playing with her down south.

She took a sharp intake of breath when Ichigo suddenly plunged one of his fingers into her and slowly started pumping it in and out. Rukia bit her lower lip and tried to look at him. But she could only see a ball of orange hair inbetween her legs with Ichigo's piercing eyes peering over his bangs and into her violet eyes.

And suddenly Ichigo found the pink cunt that was sticking out between her folds. He looked at it for a second before licking it over once. Rukia whimpered as an attempt to stop her screams but when Ichigo started to suck on it she could no longer hold her voice as she moaned loudly. Automatically Rukia moved her hips against Ichigo's finger and mouth, and it was a matter of seconds before a white light flashed over her eyes and she released the warm liquid of pleasure.

"Ichigo!" she yelled as she released herself of her orgasm.

Ichigo wanted to continue playing with her as he twirled his fingers in her curly hair but when he tasted the juices coming out of her, his erection told him it wanted action. And it wanted it NOW. With one more lick, Ichigo slowly lifted himself and crawled forward, positioning himself directly before her opening.

He looked down to see a flustered Rukia breathing deeply, waiting for him to enter her. Ichigo used his hand to lift her chin so that they could look at each other in the eye. He wanted to ask her one more time if she really wanted this, but her eyes already held the answer to his unasked questioned.

Ichigo laid his forehead against hers and took one deep breath as he slowly and steadily pushed his way in her.

Rukia let out a gasp as she felt his huge erection slowly entering her. He stopped when the tip was in, and already she was worried if she would be able to accommodate his size. But before she got a chance to really think this through Ichigo pushed himself even deeper, bringing out a small scream from Rukia.

Ichigo could feel Rukia's nails drawing out blood on his back but he kept pushing himself in, already aware that he was completely addicted to this warmth. Never had he felt something as great as this feeling. He wondered how he lived up until now without knowing such pleasure that made him feel so complete.

Once he was fully in her, Ichigo was very still, waiting for Rukia to completely adjust to him. His eyes were tightly shut, trying hard to focus his breathing. Underneath him Rukia's chest raised up and down, heaving for breath. Indeed there was a sharp pain when Ichigo entered her, but with each passing second it subsided. It really wasn't as bad as she thought it'd be, possibly an effect from the heavy training she does as a shinigami.

It took only a few more seconds before Rukia started to move her hips.

Ichigo's breathing became harder as he felt Rukia move. She whispered into his ear, begging for him to continue when Ichigo wanted to take things slow, afraid of hurting her. So he slowly started to pull out. Rukia moaned when nothing but the tip was in her. She wanted the pleasure back. Rukia looked up to see Ichigo breathing deeply, trying to restrain himself from rushing into her too quickly.

Just as he heard her whimper, Ichigo carefully thrusted himself back in, getting intoxicated by her moans that made him feel harder. Soon Ichigo got into the rhythm as he started to thrust in and out of her womanhood a little bit faster and a little bit deeper. He grabbed her hips to match their rhythm as Rukia would move her hips to collide against his with each thrust. And as their bodies now reacted uniformly together, they felt content with being together. In fact, it made them feel like their entire existence was for the sake of being together.

"I-Ichigo," Rukia stuttered as Ichigo kept pumping in and out of her. Ichigo tried to respond but only moans escaped as his hips started to move faster. He managed to open one eye to look at the woman he loved.

Rukia was damn gorgeous.

With each thrust Rukia matched his movement and more pleasure jolted through their bodies. She kept moaning as their bodies continued to stay connected… but she was close to her limit and she knew it.

"Ichigo," she whimpered as she tightened her legs around Ichigo's waist. Her moans were getting louder and screams were escaping her lips. "Ah!" she cried when Ichigo suddenly hit that special place deep within her.

Ichigo stopped for a second when Rukia suddenly yelped. He looked at her through his sweaty bangs and noticed her breathing was quickening. He slightly pulled himself out and thrusted back in with the same amount of force as he did previously, as well as the same deepness. Rukia yelped again and Ichigo knew he found the spot.

He quickened his paced and thrusted harder into Rukia as she kept making noises that sounded like music to his ears. And with each thrust, Ichigo felt his limit coming close…

"Dammit," he whispered to himself as he tried to control his body. There was no way he'd release himself until Rukia was thrown into pleasure first.

Rukia kept gasping for breath with each push. Suddenly she felt one of Ichigo's hands going in between their joint bodies. She was about to question his intentions when suddenly she felt him rubbing his fingers against her already-being-used womanhood and rub against the stub of nerves. That triggered it.

"ICHIGO!" Rukia screamed as pleasure flashed before her eyes again and released herself completely against him.

Ichigo felt Rukia's walls closing in around his member and it made things crazier. As her juices fell out of her and onto him, Ichigo knew he was ready to cum.

One, two, three more thrusts and Ichigo clamped his mouth over Rukia's as he pushed himself as deep within her as he could, releasing the pleasure that flashed before him.

Rukia twitched a bit when she felt his cum shooting into her and overfilling her as it mixed in with what she had released. She let out a sigh as she felt him going limp within her. She decided to focus on his mouth by responding to his lips.

After a few more seconds Ichigo lifted his mouth away from Rukia and looked down. She stared right back up to him and smiled widely that made him feel content. Ichigo slowly pulled himself out of her, both moaning at the same time he did this, and fell down next to her body. He watched as the moonlight was now shining into the room, her sweat glistening her body. Ichigo smiled as he gathered the woman into his arms and focused on steadying his breathing.

"Promise me you'll never leave me," Ichigo whispered as he placed his sweaty forehead against hers.

Rukia swallowed hard as she smiled. "I'll promise only if you promise the same thing."

Ichigo let out a small laugh as he pulled covers over their naked bodies. "Of course, midget."

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...

I felt like such a pervert while writing this. lol. hope you liked it. It might not be great since I'm still a noob at this and actually felt a bit uncomfortable writing it... kinda feels like i'm sharing my sex life (cough cough)

I know it would have been better if I had some more chapters in between this and the previous one to create a better story, but I really wanna move the story along. so hurry up and got to the next chapter!


	8. Anyone Up For More Reiatsu?

**Author's Note: Here's the next chapter for today's upload. It's a lot shorter than the previous one... mostly because I didn't want to spend too much time with it. I'm so desperate to finish this fic!!**

**Something eventful happens that'll affect the future. Read and find out what!**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach... Sorry

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Chapter 7: Anyone Up For More Reiatsu?

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Isshin looked across the kitchen table where everyone was eating their breakfast. But his attention was mostly focused on the orange head sitting to his left.

When Isshin went to wake up his son this morning, he reacted like he usually did: punched Isshin right back. But Ichigo became unusually quiet when he came into the kitchen… correction: when he suddenly saw Rukia.

The ex-shinigami knew right away that something was going on, or something had already happened between the two.

"Gochisoosama," Ichigo said as he placed down his empty bowl and stood up. Without glancing back, he grabbed his bag and headed out the door.

"Itterrashi!" Yuzu called out to her brother as she cleared the table of his utensils.

Rukia took a gulp of her water before slowly rising up to follow him. "Thanks for the meal Yuzu! I'll see you later!"

Yuzu and Karin waved goodbye but Isshin only sat still, watching the two forms of Ichigo and Rukia disappear as the front door closed behind them. His daughters didn't seem to have noticed the silence between the two.

_Ring ring ring_

Isshin got out of his trance when the phone rang. He got out of his seat and walked over to his phone and picked it up with his usual, happy tone. "Moshi moshi? This is the handsome Dr. Kurosaki Isshin speaking!"

"_Kurosaki-san!"_ Urahara's voice spoke through the other line with a singing tone, "_I have something very important to discuss with you! Can you meet me?"_

"Why, of course! When?"

"_Right now!"_

MEANTIME…

Ichigo and Rukia quietly walked around the corner, now officially two blocks away from their home. And without a word, Ichigo grabbed Rukia by the wrist and dragged her to a small alleyway where no one could see them.

"Ichi—mmh" Rukia's words got cut off as Ichigo smashed his lips against hers and passionately kissed her. Her shocked eyes relaxed and slowly responded as her arms encircled around Ichigo's neck.

When Ichigo could no longer breathe he pulled himself off of Rukia and looked into her eyes.

Rukia stared back and smirked. "How long have you been waiting to do this?"

"Since last night," Ichigo smirked back.

Rukia lightly chuckled as Ichigo slowly took her lips again. It was still a bit odd for them to display so much affection to one another. But whenever they go a day without even so much as touch one another, life almost seemed unbearable.

It's been a few days since they shared their first nights together. At first it was odd, pretending like nothing happened in front of others. But when they got time for themselves, Ichigo and Rukia would always lock themselves in his room or wherever was quiet and had a lock. They've been officially 'sleeping' together for awhile now (though they never had time for actual sleep) and it seemed nobody was aware of it. Ichigo was just glad that Byakuya and Renji hadn't shown up at his house unexpectedly. Ichigo wasn't afraid to stand up to them since he was confident he could beat the two shinigami, but was afraid of how it might affect Rukia. So Ichigo was very cautious and only 'touched' her when they were one hundred percent sure they were alone.

Ichigo brought up his hand and pulled Rukia's head a little bit more to the side so he could push his tongue deeper into her throat when suddenly Rukia's phone started to beep.

_Hollow Hollow Hollow_

Ichigo groaned as pushed himself off of Rukia to grab his screeching badge.

Talk about bad timing.

"I think this is the first time in quite awhile you look pissed about an order," she commented as she pulled out her spirit phone.

"Don't tell me you aren't?" Ichigo snorted as he used his badge to turn into a shinigami.

Rukia shrugged her shoulders as she reached for Ichigo's badge. "We're going to be late for class either way," she responded.

The two quickly hid their bodies behind some bushes and went after the Hollow.

"Down there!" Rukia shouted as she pointed below where a huge Hollow was chasing after the soul of a young girl.

"I'm gonna end this quick!" Ichigo shouted. He pulled out Zangetsu from his back and pointed it downwards as he fell on top of the Hollow.

Rukia shook her head, watching the sloppy job Ichigo was doing as he fought against the Hollow. Suddenly the Hollow made a run for it and Ichigo angrily chased after it. Rukia could no longer see the two from where she was. She landed on the ground and noticed the little girl crying as she kept running away.

"W-wait!" Rukia called out as she chased the girl. It didn't take too long to catch up to her since she was still little. Rukia grabbed her shaking shoulders and pulled on it. "I said stop—"

"Don't kill me!" she cried. Rukia quickly let go and the girl fell on the ground. Her crying intensified as she screamed for her mother.

Feeling sorry for the frightened girl Rukia knelt down and gave her a soft smile. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm here to help you."

The little girl slowly looked up but didn't stop crying. "Really?"

Rukia nodded her head.

The soul must have felt better after seeing Rukia's smile because she wiped her tears and gave a small smile as she spoke, "Will you help me find my mommy?"

The sudden question caught Rukia off-guard. "Well…," she rubbed the back of her neck, not sure how to respond to that question, "I'd like to but you see… well, um…"

"That's okay. I know I'm dead," the girl responded. Rukia snapped her head up and looked at the girl with disbelief. She tried to say something but only stuttered. The little girl lightly giggled at the older woman's response. "I've been dead for some time now. My mommy told me…But she disappeared one day when I woke up…" She stopped speaking as tears formed in her eyes again.

Rukia didn't know what to do in situations like this. For all she knew, the mother could have been sent to Soul Society already or she could have been eaten by a Hollow. Rukia sighed as she slowly pulled out her Zanpakotou. "I don't know exactly where your mother is, but I can assure you that you'll find peace in Soul Society. And maybe, just maybe your mother is already waiting for you there."

"Soul Society… is it Heaven?" the girl blinked.

Rukia nodded as she brought the hilt towards the soul's forehead. "Yes," she softly replied as she lightly tapped the soul and a beam of light engulfed the child. Soon she was replaced by a Hell's Butterfly, flying off into the sky before disappearing.

"That went well," she smiled.

"What did?" a cold voice spoke behind her.

Rukia's breathing became harder as strong reiatsu suddenly surrounded her. She slowly turned around and before her saw an arrancar stepping out of his portal.

The arrancar looked around before setting his eyes on Rukia again. He gave her a perverted smile and laughed. "I've been looking for someone with high reiatsu to feed on and it looks like I finally found one. A pretty one at that."

Rukia released her Zanpakutou into its Shikai form and held her stance, ready to attack the moment the arrancar came at her. But he kept looking at her with a disgusting smirk, lightly chuckling by himself.

"What's so funny?" she asked, not really interested.

The arrancar crossed his arms over his chest. Slowly the took a step to the side, Rukia turning as well to keep them face-to-face, and he tried to circle around her as if eyeing a piece of art. "Ara. It seems that the new reiatsu I've been sensing these days have been coming from you, my pretty shinigami."

Rukia raised an eyebrow as her body tensed. "What are you saying?" she asked, now interested in what was going through the arrancar's mind.

"My my, don't tell me a shinigami such as yourself hasn't realized the sudden change in your own reiatsu pattern. Soul Society must be getting rusty these days," he chuckled.

It was official: Rukia _really_ did not like this guy. "I really don't care about what you're saying so I'll end this quick!" she shouted as she charged towards the arrancar with Sode No Shirayuki.

The arrancar smirked as he pulled out his weapon and blocked Rukia's attack. "Too weak!" he bellowed as he pushed back with more force.

Rukia skidded on the ground but quickly found her footing again. But before she could charge for another attack, the arrancar was already in front of her, bringing down his weapon straight to her head. With all her might and speed Rukia lifted Sode No Shirayuki and their weapons collided against each other, sparks flying as they struggled to push past each other.

"It's a shame you still don't know how to tap into that amazing power of yours," the bastard whispered as he licked his lips, "But I'll still take my time and enjoy this meal!"

"EUGH!" Rukia growled as the arrancar surged out more of his reiatsu and pushed Rukia's defense closer to her. _Dammit Ichigo! Where are you?_ Rukia thought to herself, noticing that this arrancar was a lot stronger than he looked.

Suddenly, Rukia felt a sudden urge of reitasu forming within in. Her hold on her Zanpakutou tightened and with a yell she pushed with all her might.

The arrancar, who was shocked at the sudden new displaying of strength, pushed harder as his smile disappeared and got replaced with a serious frown. "AURGH!" he grunted as Rukia's reitasu intensified. It was starting to shoot out of her like bullets, cutting his skin! The arrancar got pushed back completely and flew several yards away.

Rukia was breathing deeply, confused as to how she suddenly got so much power. She looked up when she heard the arrancar suddenly laughing as he got up.

"MUHAHAHAHAH! Just as I had expected! Your reiatsu is so great I can't wait to eat it!" He screamed as he charged at her with full force. His frown got once again replaced with his smile but it was now looking more menacing and crazy.

Rukia took a step back. Sure she still didn't know where her powers were coming from but that doesn't mean she can't use it to her advantage. Besides, she had to end this quick if she wanted to make it to school in time. "First Dance: White Moon," she called out as her Zanpakutou glowed.

A white circle surrounded the shocked arrancar and suddenly shot upwards. "NOOOO!" he screamed until his voice got cut off as his body got frozen with a thick layer of ice, glistening in the sun. As Rukia gracefully returned Sode No Shirayuki into its sheath, the ice cracked and the arrancar inside fell into tiny pieces.

"Rukia."

The said woman turned around and smiled upon seeing Ichigo land on the ground next to her. "Where were you?" she pouted.

But Ichigo was not in the mood for games. He frowned as the pieces of the arrancar started to dissipate, and when it was all gone Ichigo yanked on Rukia's arm and examined her. "Are you okay? Did you get hurt? Where did that arrancar come from?"

Rukia yanked her arm out of Ichigo's painful grasp and kicked him. "Baka! Of course I'm fine, that is until you pulled on my arm."

Ichigo pouted, still examining her.

Rukia sighed as she rubbed her temples with her fingers and said, "Ichigo, really I'm fine so will you just stop?"

"Then explain to me where that reiatsu came from," Ichigo asked with a deep scowl. When Rukia turned away to try and avoid the question Ichigo gently grabbed her chin and pulled her towards him. "I'm not letting you off that easily. Tell me what's going on."

Rukia sighed and shook her head as she said, "I really don't know."

"How is that possible?" he asked as he brought his hand down.

"Wish I knew," she responded with a shrug, "I suddenly felt this weird strength coming out of me and I used it. And it made my attack a lot stronger."

"We know why!" cried out two voices in unison.

Ichigo and Rukia turned around to see Isshin and Urahara sitting on a bench. They were drinking some tea and looked as if they were watching a movie.

"How long have you two been there?" Ichigo raised a questioning eyebrow.

Isshin and Urahara got up and walked over.

"Long enough," Urahara fanned himself.

Isshin nodded. But when he made eye-contact with Ichigo, it sparkled. "ICHIGOOO!"

"AH!" Ichigo had no time to defend himself when his dad suddenly ran the last few feet and grabbed him into a huge bear hug. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"Ichigo! I am so proud of you, my son!" Isshin cried with tears rolling down his eyes, "You have truly proven yourself as a man!"

"What are you saying?!" Ichigo shouted as he shoved his father away. But that was probably not a good idea because Isshin was now closer to Rukia and the old man took the chance to hug her.

"My third-daughter… NO! You are now officially my daughter-in-law! Oh, I'm so happy!" He cried.

"Ano," Rukia awkwardly spoke, "What are you saying?"

"No need to be shy Rukia-chan! I know of your relationship with my son!" Isshin cried out with a wide grin. Blushes ran across both Ichigo and Rukia's face as Isshin continued. "And I'm also very much aware that you two had 'connected,'" he winked with a fake blush.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!" Ichigo yelled as he tore his father away from Rukia who looked like she was about to faint.

"Ara," Urahara continued fanning himself, "Looks like things are getting violent."

"Nothing I can't handle," Isshin gave his friend a thumb's up.

Ichigo glared at the two men and grabbed Rukia's wrist. "We're leaving—"

"Not if you want to know what Rukia's new powers are all about!" Urahara yelled after them with a smug expression.

Rukia's ears perked up and came to a halt. Ichigo felt her body no longer moving and stopped himself, dropping his head in defeat. It seems like Rukia was determined to stay behind, even if it meant going through the embarrassing talks with his father.

Rukia turned around and stared at Urahara. "So you know?"

Urahara smiled widely as his eyes peered over his hat. "Of course. Why else would we be here?"

"Then hurry up and tell us," Ichigo grunted, "We still have school to get to."

"Blah. Who needs school now that you two are fully adults," Isshin smirked.

Ichigo raised his fist, ready to hit his father if Rukia hadn't stopped him. She just quickly glared at Urahara but also begged him to hurry up and tell them.

Urahara smirked as he fanned himself. "It's quite simple. When the two of you had, dare I say, 'sex', it automatically transferred some of Kurosaki-kun's enormous reiatsu into you, Kuchiki-san, thus you sudden increase in strength. And this was how we knew what had happened to you two."

Ichigo blinked his eyes a few times. "So what does that mean? Am I weaker now?"

"Nope. It just means that your _shared_ some of your reiatsu with Kuchiki-san, triggering something inside her that allowed her to release more reiatsu. All in all, Kuchiki-san was able to obtain more power from you. Isn't that sweet?"

Ichigo only blushed and was about to retort but Rukia smack his arm to shut him up. She looked at the two older men who were now giggling. She sighed as she asked, "Is this normal? And will this happen again if we…um, you know."

"Don't worry Rukia-chan," Isshin replied, "It's is a normal occurrence between two people with high reiatsu levels. And it only happens the first time so no needs to stop yourselves from enjoying your youths. I guess you can see it as a form of 'biding' one's soul to another as they share and sacrifice their power for each other."

Ichigo rubbed the back of his head, still confused to all the _unnecessary _information that just smacked his head. He sighed and looked at the woman in front of him. "Com'on Rukia, we still have to go to class."

Rukia looked up and nodded. The two bid their farewells and walked away when Urahara sang out after them to come by his store afterschool with Chad, Orihime and Uryuu.

I know the whole Rukia's-new-power thing is a bit odd but it plays a role in later chapters. Please be patient and wait for it!! I'm so trying my best to spend more time with this fic...

What might Urahara and Isshin have to say to the group? Find out NOW!


	9. Understanding and Questioning

**Author's Note: the last part of today's update. And again, short. But it's mostly to answer to any question from previous chapters. I'm hoping to update again this weekend but it's still hard since my professors have been up in my face with homework. But since it's the weekends I might have time to write more.**

**This has a little info on Orihime's crush on Ichigo, her relationship with Rukia, and what Urahara wants to talk about from the previous chapter. Again, read carefully to find out around how much time had past since the end of the war.**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach... Sorry

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**FYI:** I uploaded THREE chapters today! So start reading from ch.6

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Chapter 8: Understanding and Questioning

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Orihime looked around the class that just started their break. She only had fifteen minutes to talk to the person she was looking for but couldn't see that person in the room.

Tatsuki looked at her friend and yawned. "Who are you looking for Orihime?"

The said girl snapped to attention and smiled widely at her friend before responding, "No one really. Oh!" she clapped her hands together and jumped out of her seat, "I have to go to the bathroom!" she cried as she ran out of the classroom, leaving Tatsuki alone and dumbfounded.

Orihime walked around the school, searching for her friend. Remembering where that person often hid, she quickly ran outside, snuggling into her jacket for more warmth, and stopped in front of the big tree she and her friends would often eat lunch by during warmer weather.

"Found you!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms into the air and smiling widely.

Rukia suddenly jumped off the branch and landed next to her well-endowed friend. "Were you looking for me Inoue?"

Orihime nodded and lead Rukia to a bench next to the school wall. The two sat down and looked up into the sky where the sun was peering over the clouds, melting way the cold of the winter breeze.

"So," Orihime suddenly spoke, "How are things going with Kurosaki-kun?"

Rukia couldn't help but blush. "W-what do you mean?"

Orihime chuckled at her friend's cute reaction. "You don't have to hide it. I can tell you two finally realized your feelings for each other."

"H-how?" Rukia stuttered as she looked away.

"By the way you two have been interacting with each other these days. You would always wear a happy smile, even when you fight. And Kurosaki-kun would smile happily, too, whenever he looked at you," she pointed out.

Rukia sighed. _Looks like the cat's out of the bag_. She stood up, straightened her skirt, stood in front of Orihime and bowed 90-degrees. "Gomen!"

Orihime's eyes widen and frantically waved her arms, shaking her head, "No…why? I don't understand. Please stand up—"

Rukia kept her position as she kept talking. "I know you have feelings for Ichigo and I'm a horrible person who took away your chances with him. I know I'm not worthy to be your friend but I really really like you and I want to continue our friendship."

Orihime looked at her friend with an arched eyebrow but started to laugh when she heard of Rukia's explanation. Rukia stood up straight and looked deep into Orihime's eyes with a serious expression. Her friend kept laughing and smiled sweetly at her. "Kuchiki-san, you don't have to say that. Don't you know I'm happy for your two?"

"But—"

"When I was saved from Hueco Mundo, I decided to confess to Kurosaki-kun," she confessed, "But then I realized something _while _confessing. I was really scared, not for the possibility that he might reject me but in case he accepted me." Orihime paused as Rukia sat down next to her again. She looked at her friend who looked confused. Orihime smiled as she closed her eyes to remember that eventful day.

**Flashback**

"_I really like you!" Orihime cried out as she bowed._

_Ichigo looked at her with a stunt expression. "W-what?" he stuttered._

_Suddenly, out of nowhere her heart started beating really fast and sweat was forming. Yes, it was good to finally let this weight off her chest, but…why is she hoping for him to say 'no'? It was then Orihime realized what she _really_ wanted._

_Before Ichigo could reply Orihime started to laugh even though there were tears in her eyes. Ichigo, still too stunt, didn't know how to react._

"_A-are you ok, Inoue?" he asked cautiously._

_Orihime straightened up as she smiled and nodded._

_Ichigo cleared his throat and scratched the back of his head. He looked away, kind of embarrassed of his situation. "Well, um… I really appreciate your confession, but… damn, how do I say this…sorry." He whispered the last word as he looked straight into her eyes._

"_Thank goodness!"_

_The orange head slightly lost his footing at the unexpected outburst from a girl that just got rejected by him. "W-what?"_

_Orihime laughed at Ichigo's 'WTF' expression. "All I wanted was to tell you that I like you but I really didn't want to date you."_

"_Again: what?" he repeated, looking questionably at his friend._

"_I already know who you really like, and I really, with all my heart, want you things to work out between you two."_

"_Who are you talking about?" Ichigo asked._

_Orihime smiled, giving him a wink. "Kuchiki-san, of course!"_

"_WHAT?!" Ichigo blushed furiously as he roared, "I have no idea what you're talking about."_

"_Hehe," Orihime giggled, "I might seem a bit silly sometimes but I'm very observant. And I've known all this time that you two like each other," she said in a teasing tone._

"_Che, I don't know what you're talking about," he repeated as looked away, afraid of getting caught._

"_Still, if you need any help with Kuchiki-san, ask me! I'm totally supportive of your relationship!" Orihime smiled, throwing her arms into the air and cheering the red Ichigo into confessing, while he kept denying it._

**End of Flashback**

Rukia smiled sweetly with a faint blush. "He really is an idiot."

Orihime laughed as the two looked at each other. She just finished telling Rukia when and what happened during her confession.

As Rukia watched her bubbly friend laugh, she wrapped her arms around her friend's waist and hugged her tightly. "Thank you," she whispered.

Orihime hugged back and smiled widely. "Hehe, no problem! And if Kurosaki-kun does anything to hurt you, tell me and I'll make him pay," she teased with a fake scowl.

"Trust me, if he does anything stupid, I'll kill him myself…if niisama or Renji doesn't get to him first that is," she laughed and Orihime joined her.

At that point Tatsuki, who had been hiding by the corner and listening to their conversation the whole time, decided it was time to make her presence known. She jumped out and quickly hugged her two friends. "God, I'm glad I have you two!" she exclaimed.

"Tatsuki-chan! When did you get here?" Orihime asked as the three girls pulled away to look at each other, although their arms were still linked.

"I was here the whole time," Tatsuki replied. She then looked at each of the girls and sighed. "I seriously don't think Ichigo deserves either of you two."

Rukia and Orihime laughed at their friend's comment, sort of agreeing with her at the same time.

"WHAT THE HELL?"!

The girls turned around to see an angry Chizuru staring at them with Ryo and Michiru walking behind her.

"ARISAWA! GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF MY HIME AND RUKI!"

"What's going on out there?"

Ichigo turned around and came face-to-face with Mizuiro who just asked him a question. The orange head shrugged. "Tatsuki is just beating up Chizuru again."

At that point Keigo jumped towards the window and looked down. "Look! The goddess of valleys and the beautiful Kuchiki-san is down there as well! Oh, what I won't give to date at least one of them!" he cried with fake waterworks strolling down his eye.

And before Ichigo could walk away Keigo jumped up and clung to him. "ICHIGO! Why are we so unfortunate to not have girlfriends when we should be living out our youths?!"

"Why are you dragging me into this?!" Ichigo yelled as he tossed his 'friend' to the side.

"Asano-kun—"

"And why are you acting all formal to me?!"

"—You shouldn't compared Ichigo to yourself," Mizuiro continued, totally ignoring Keigo's cries, "He's already got a girl."

"What?!" Ichigo and Keigo yelled out at the same time.

Mizuiro smiled (girls might think it is cute but guys know very well it meant mischief) at Ichigo. "I saw you making out with _someone_ yesterday while I was at the grocery's," he pointed his finger at Ichigo who was blushing.

"ICHIGGOOO! How could you do this to me?! Who are you going out with?!" Keigo once again threw himself at his friend but Ichigo side-stepped just in time and dodged Keigo, who ended up slamming into the desk.

Mizuiro checked to make sure Keigo wasn't dead and looked at Ichigo. "So, how long has it been since you two made it official?"

"Shut up," Ichigo snorted as he looked back out the window. He looked down to see a laughing Rukia surrounded by her friends and his scowl slightly disappeared as a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

--

"Explain to me again WHY I'm missing my handicraft club for this?" Uryuu groaned for the nth time that day.

"Shut up you stupid pansy," Ichigo shouted back at him, "Why do you care so much? Look, even Inoue's not complaining and you two are in the same club together," Ichigo reasoned as he pointed at Orihime who was talking with Rukia.

Uryuu just pouted and kept walking with his friends to Urahara's shop afterschool. Upon arriving at the shop, they noticed Jinta and Ururu were once again neglecting their work as they played Janken-po.

"JAN-KEN-PO!" They cried out. Jinta released 'scissors' while Ururu pulled out her fist as 'rock.'

"Look over—there," Ururu softly spoke, pointing upwards and the pissed off Jinta's gaze followed her finger. "Yeah, I won!" Ururu cheered.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Jinta cried out as he pulled on poor Ururu's bangs, "YOU CHEATED!"

_Idiot_, the five teenagers thought to themselves.

"Jinta! What have I told you about picking fights with Ururu?" Tessai said as he picked up the frantic boy off the ground. While Jinta was still making a fuss, Tessai looked to the side and noticed the five teens still standing before them. "Oh! You're all here! Well the manager is downstairs in the training room, waiting for you," he told them.

Ichigo shrugged as he led his group inside.

Rukia just walked by the three employees, patting Ururu's head as she passed her.

"Thanks," Chad said to Tessai.

"Thank you," Orihime bowed at the older man.

Uryuu just nodded and got the same response before closing the doors behind him.

When all five of them arrived at the underground training room they noticed Urahara not too far away, surrounded by a couple of people.

"What's going on?" Ichigo asked when he arrived before them.

"ICHIGOO!" Isshin jumped up and aimed his two feet at his son's face. Sadly for him Ichigo already saw the move coming so he quickly threw a punch at his father, sending him off course.

But unlucky for Ichigo, his father landed right next to Rukia.

Isshin jumped right back up and pulled Rukia into a hug. "RUKIA-CHAN! Papa is so happy that my ingrate of a son had chosen you to be the future bearer of his children! Tell me, any signs of a baby yet?"

Rukia blushed heavily, opening and closing her mouth, unsure of how to answer the grandfather-wannabe.

"Will you stop that?!" Ichigo cried out.

Thankfully Ishida Ryuuken, whose been sitting with Urahara and gang, got up and pulled the back of Isshin's collar. "You're annoying," he sternly said to his 'friend.'

"And you're a jackass," Isshin retorted with a pout.

Yoruichi slapped the back of Isshin's head to shut him up. She looked up at the blushing Ichigo and grinned. "So I heard you finally took a step into manhood, hm? Well good for you!" she laughed as she patted Ichigo's back.

"When did you two make things official?" Ishida asked as he pushed up his glasses.

"Apparently not too long ago," Orihime answered for her flustered friends.

"Will every one of you just shut up and tell me what's going on?!" Ichigo cried, wanting nothing more than to get himself, and his girlfriend, out of the center-of-attention.

"Sheesh, fine," Isshin pouted as he sat back down, arms crossed over his chest.

"So, why did you call us here?" Rukia asked, sitting on her knees and Orihime followed suit. Ichigo, Chad and Uryuu just stood behind the girls and waited for the others to talk.

Urahara snapped his fan shut and raised his hat slightly higher. "We just wanted to keep you guys updated," he said. "Since we don't fully know whether Aizen is really dead or not, Yoruichi decided to check up on a few things."

"And?" Chad asked.

Urahara and Yoruichi looked at each other for a moment and shrugged.

"Well, so far nothing bad has happened," Yoruichi replied, "But that's what's bothering us. It's been too quiet this past month since the war ended. I went to Hueco Mundo a few days ago and just got back after meeting up with Nell. Apparently things have been way too quiet on her side as well, bringing up suspicion amongst them."

There was a pause as the information sunk in. Ichigo felt his gut twisting, thinking that if Aizen was coming back, then it was his fault… _Damn!_

"Does this have anything to do with that arrancar I encountered earlier today?" Rukia suddenly asked.

"That's why we're here," Ryuuken replied as he pulled off his glasses to clean it, "We are not sure if it something important or not so we're looking into it."

Isshin nodded in agreement. "So if any of you guys notice anything suspicious, come tell one of us right away."

The five teens nodded with a serious expression.

Maybe the war wasn't over yet…

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OMG! War not over? Is this true? You'll have to wait and see! Find out what else comes up and tries to get in the way of Ichigo living a normal life with his family, friends, and Rukia!


	10. Roommates Again

**Author's Note: THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS! I love reading your guys' reviews 'cuz it makes me feel happier w/my fic. I'm uploading three chapters today so enjoy!**

**This takes place on the same day as the previous chapter. It's more of a 'humor' moment before things get serious starting the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer**: I do NOT own Bleach...Sorry

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Chapter 9: Roommates Again

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Ichigo looked around his room with a WTF look. Things were a bit off… correction, things were WAY off.

His bed was bigger… was it really bigger? HELL YES IT WAS BIGGER!

His shelves were packed with more books that weren't even his.

Another set of drawers (although they were small) were fitted into the corner of his room, next to the ones he already had.

On top of desk were…feminine magazines, neatly lined up (with a "Mother's Magazine" lying on the very top).

And… this was probably the worst part… there were Chappys.

Yes, his bed had Chappy dolls on it, his school items were fitted with Chappy utensils, and his desk was covered with Chappy toys and whatnots.

_Did I just walk into the wrong room?_ Ichigo asked himself.

"AAAAHHHHHH!"

The orange head snapped to attention upon hearing Rukia's scream. Quickly forgetting about whether he was in his room or not, Ichigo ran to his sisters' room.

"Rukia!" he called out as soon as she came into view, "What's wrong?!"

"Ichigo!" she turned around and looked at him with wide eyes, "All my Chappy stuffs are gone!"

This time Ichigo gave her the WTF look. Realizing what she had just said and how this might be related to his new room, he dropped his head and shoulders and sighed. He knew right away what was going on and who was to blame…

"And my bed is gone too!" Rukia kept crying.

Ichigo grabbed Rukia's wrist and dragged her to his room. He opened the door and pushed in the frantic woman. Rukia kicked him, telling him that she had no time for 'hanky panky' until her dilemma was solved. Ichigo—while trying hard not to cry out in pain—pointed his finger towards his bed. Rukia turned around and noticed all—and I mean ALL—of her items in his room.

"What are they doing here?" she asked.

At that point Karin, who was walking by, came in and leaned against the doorframe. "Old beardy made us do it. Sorry Rukia-neesan, but looks like you're going to be sharing Ichi-nii's room from now on."

Rukia looked at her dumbfounded while Ichigo was busy planning on ways to kills his father.

Things just couldn't get any worse!

…

Or maybe it can… you never know with Kurosaki Isshin!

"My children! Gather around the table for our delicious dinner!" he spread his arms wide open as Ichigo walked down the steps after Karin and Rukia. Upon seeing his father, Ichigo raised his fists, ready to kill the bastard, had not Rukia and his sisters stopped him.

Isshin quickly ran to the poster of his wife and threw himself on it. "Masaki! Why does our son show such violence when I go through all the trouble to help him and the future Kurosaki's that our third-daughter is bearing for us?!"

"Shut up!" Ichigo yelled, afraid his neighbors might hear what his father is ranting about, "And Rukia is NOT pregnant!"

"Not yet," Karin snorted to the side.

"Oniichan! Otousan! Stop fighting and come eat dinner!" Yuzu pouted as she led Rukia and Karin to the table.

Ichigo glared darts at his father as they both (Isshin more cautiously than Ichigo) walked to the table and sat down at their respectful seats.

"ITADAKIMASU!" Rukia and Karin yelled out to try and distract the enraged Ichigo, but it wasn't working.

Isshin just ate his meal like he usually did and asked embarrassing questions to his daughters. Ichigo wanted so bad to jump at his old man and beat the shit out of him but whenever he flinched, even a little, Rukia would stomp on his foot to stop him…hard.

"So Rukia-neesan, are you planning on getting married to Ichi-nii?" Karin asked as she swallowed her food.

Ichigo and Rukia just stared at the young Kurosaki, mouth agape and unsure of how to answer her question. But Isshin was reacting in a different manner.

"Excellent question, oh dear daughter of mine!" he gave her a thumb's up before looking at the new couple, "I'd also like to know when the ceremony is going to take place. It'd be nice to have it in Soul Society but some of your relatives from your mother's side might want to come and that'll cause problems—"

"Will you shut up?!" Ichigo slammed his father's head on the kitchen table. He looked at Karin who was smirking. "I hate you," he sneered at her.

Yuzu sat up and looked at Rukia with sparkling eyes. "Can I help plan the wedding? I'd be willing to help with the reception too."

Rukia awkwardly smiled but was too afraid to say anything. She yanked on Ichigo's fingers under the table, begging for help.

When he felt his fingers ready to be ripped off, Ichigo sighed as he looked at his hopeful sister. "Yuzu, we're not getting married…at least not now. We just started dating, you know."

"Even if we did, I doubt niisama is going to allow the wedding to take place here in the human world, much less accept your brother as my husband," Rukia spoke to Yuzu.

"Well he can go to hell for all I care. I don't need his consent to marry you," Ichigo pouted.

"I like where this conversation is going!" Isshin cried out, waving his arms around like an idiot, "Looks like I only have to wait a little bit more before I hear wedding bells and the cries of a baby!"

Ichigo glared at his father as he returned to his dinner. But Isshin wasn't done yet.

"Rukia-chan," he called out, "Have you ever though about children?"

Rukia sat there for a moment and rubbed the back of her neck. "Well, not really. In Soul Society I've been too busy with my duties as a Shinigami so settling down and having kids never really crossed my mind."

"Is it even allowed in Soul Society to wed and have kids?" Karin asked, raising a questionable eyebrow.

Rukia nodded. "It is allowed. Marriage is quite common but having children isn't. It's not looked upon in a negative way though. It's just that most couples are either busy with work or just trying to make it in Soul Society that there really isn't time to raise children besides the ones from the human world that they would adopt."

"But since you're a noble doesn't that mean you'll have to marry one?" Yuzu peeped up upon the sudden realization. Her eyes started to water, afraid she might be losing her future-sister-in-law.

Ichigo started to choke on the chicken he was eating.

"Chew your food, boy!" Isshin said as he patted Ichigo's back.

Rukia smiled as she offered Ichigo some water. And dinner continued, everyone forgetting Yuzu's last question as they changed the subject to how stupid Ichigo was for choking on a piece of chicken like that.

Dinner continued peacefully…or at least as peaceful as it can be in the Kurosaki household. Isshin kept embarrassing Ichigo and Rukia about their sex life and Yuzu was busy listing off baby names.

After dinner, Rukia quickly took a shower and returned to her…correction, their…room and pulled out her homework. She sat down on _their_ bed as she waited for Ichigo to come back from his shower. She looked over the paper that held the difficult math problems and scrunched up her nose. Seriously, why was something so difficult as this, one of the basis to aid you in the future? It just seemed ridiculous to her.

"Still stressed out about those geometry problems?" Ichigo asked as he walked in the door, closed it, and locked it at the same time.

"Yeah, and I still don't know why I have to do this," Rukia pouted.

Ichigo threw the towel on to the chair and sat on their bed, grabbed the sheet out of Rukia's grasp. He looked over it and smiled. "This isn't so hard. Didn't I already explain all of this to you last week?" he asked, looking at the woman who was ignoring his smirk.

"It's still difficult," she replied with the cute pout that Ichigo couldn't resist but lightly kiss her lips. Upon feeling Ichigo's lips against hers, she moaned and leaned forward.

Sadly Ichigo pulled away, looking at her with his grin. "So, do you want to work on your homework or test out this new bed of ours?"

"I thought you didn't like the idea of sharing a room with me," Rukia did a fake pout.

Ichigo chuckled as he slowly pushed her down on the bed and crawled on top of her. He buried his face into the crook of her neck, taking in her scent as he slowly placed small kisses on it. "I'm not mad about sharing a room with you; I'm just pissed that my old man went through our stuff and did things without our consent. Not to mention what embarrassing things he might have told my sisters."

Rukia laughed as she stroked her fingers through his orange hair. "No wonder Yuzu kept blushing all night when our eyes met."

Ichigo grunted as he made his way down to nip on her pulse point. At first Rukia moaned at his intimate actions but then she looked up to read the clock. It was already 10pm and they still had school the next day. With a sigh Rukia lightly pushed the orange head off of her and sat up.

"Sorry but it looks like the fun has to wait another time. I still haven't finished my homework and we have school tomorrow. I can't stay up too late today."

"Just copy mine; you always did that," Ichigo whispered as he kept kissing Rukia across her bare shoulder while he slowly pulled down one side of her pajama.

Even though Rukia was enjoying his touch, she knew she couldn't let this continue.

_Smack!_

"OW! Woman, what is wrong with you?!" Ichigo cried out as he grabbed his throbbing head that just got hit by a book.

Rukia smirked as she got off the bed and made way to their new desk. She sat down and opened Ichigo's bag to pull out his homework. "Maybe next time," she simply said as she grabbed her Chappy pen and looked over her homework.

Ichigo pouted as he walked over and knelt down by the chair, his head now leveled to her chest from where she sat. He looked at her for a moment and leaned closer. "Do you seriously think I'm going to let you off that easily?" he huffed into her ears.

Rukia shoulders went up and a shiver ran down her spine as his breathe wrapped around her skin. Damn, this is getting hard! "Ichigo, I'm serious, mmm…" Rukia moaned when Ichigo's hand slid down her back and started to rub her skin over her shirt, while nipping and licking at her neck. She let out puffs of breath, trying best to maintain her control but Ichigo was making things too difficult when his hand went under her shirt and made way to her breast.

Rukia wrapped her arms around his neck, grabbing fistfuls of his orange hair as she tilted his head to meet her lips with his. Ichigo couldn't help but smirk against her lips, glad that she was seeing things his ways. But his cockiness seems to have come out too quickly.

As soon as Rukia felt his smirk against her lips, a vein popped out. It annoyed her when he gave signs of her losing to him, in whatever fight they were in. And since his tongue was already in her mouth…

"OW!" Ichigo jumped back when Rukia suddenly bit his tongue, "Whot iz wong wuith you?" he complained as he check to make sure he wasn't bleeding.

Rukia only smiled and ruffled his spiky hair. "You should have suspected this," she teased.

_Knock knock_

"_Hey! I thought I said to keep things quiet when others are in the house!"_

The two shinigami looked over at their door where Isshin just yelled through.

"FUCK OFF!" Ichigo yelled out and listened to his father's laughs as it slowly drifted away with his footsteps and into his own room.

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Just wanted to create some more funny moments. The next chapter takes place DAYS after this chapter... I mean like WEEKS later. You'll find out more as you read it! lol


	11. The Sickness

**Author's Note: Once again I'm thanking you guys for supporting me and this fic. This is a short chapter but it's full of madness that I hope makes up for it!**

**This chapter takes place WEEKS after the previous chapter and things get a bit more dramatic from here on out.**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach...Sorry

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Chapter 10: The Sickness

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Rukia woke up the next morning feeling sick again. This was starting to get really annoying. Ichigo said that it was probably a small stomach flu but this has been going on for too long. Thankfully she didn't have to run to the bathroom today. She knew how much Ichigo hated waking up seeing her in front of the toilet. But the uneasiness was still there.

Things have been too weird lately. Not only has she been feeling nauseous but tired as well. Rukia could feel herself growing more tired even though she gets plenty of sleep. There's been an increase of Hollows around Karakura as well, but Ichigo took care of them. He forbade Rukia from leaving her gigai because she was too ill. Of course she fought back, most of the times kicking his shin, but he was as stubborn as she was. In the end he won, and Rukia was kind of glad he did because she really needed to rest.

Ichigo turned over to the other side and his arm fell off her waist. It felt better on her stomach now that his pressure was off of her. But just as she was about to fall back asleep, there was a small knock on their door.

Rukia quickly sat up but didn't answer in case she was just hearing things. No other noise came so she was planning on laying back down but the knock came again.

"Who is it?" Rukia whispered as she got off the bed and walked over.

"… Rukia-chan," Isshin's voice came from outside their room.

Rukia quickly opened the door and saw the ex-shinigami standing outside. "Hai? Is anything wrong?"

Isshin gave her a smile… but it was a sad smile, totally unlike his character. "Is Ichigo awake?"

"No," Rukia quietly replied, "Do you want me to wake him up?"

Isshin shook his head, "No. I actually wanted to talk to you."

Rukia nodded and quietly stepped out and closed the door. She followed Isshin who led her to his office in the clinic. Rukia wished she had grabbed some extra clothing because now the early spring wind was coming and she was only wearing one of Ichigo's big shirts and his boxer briefs.

"Is anything wrong?" Rukia asked as she sat on the chair in front of Isshin's desk.

Isshin kept giving her a sad smile which was starting to freak her out. "Rukia-chan…"

"Hai."

"…Have you been feeling sick lately?"

Rukia blinked her eyes several times. "Yes… but how did you know—Oh! I'm sorry! Have I been waking you up when I go to the bathroom—"

"No no!" Isshin waved his hands, "I can tell by your reiatsu patterns that's how."

"Oh…" Rukia calmed down, "Actually, I was going to ask you today about it. Ichigo said it was most likely stomach flu but it's been going on for quite some time."

Isshin nodded his head. "Yes it has. Ichigo made a pretty good guess, but I have to say he diagnosed it wrong."

"I knew it," Rukia mumbled under her breath. She looked back at Isshin with a worried expression. "Then might you be able to tell me what's really going on?"

Isshin looked at Rukia and sighed. He leaned against his chair and looked up for a second before dropping his gaze back at his future daughter-in-law.

Rukia could feel her patients running out. She really wanted to know what was wrong with her because it was annoying her to no end. And here was Isshin, who seems to know what's going on but he wasn't saying anything. When Isshin finally met her gaze, she gulped. And what was to come next she was not ready for.

"Rukia-chan… You're pregnant."

Rukia stared at the older man with an emotionless expression. Isshin waited as this information slowly—and I mean _slowly_—sunk in. He knew this was not something she expected. Who would have? No amount of training in Soul Society ever made a person ready to hear that they were going to be parents. But why was she still quiet? It's been going on for too long… maybe he should repeat just in case she didn't hear clearly before.

"Rukia-chan—"

"Y-you sure?" She finally asked. "Are you absolutely certain?"

Isshin nodded his head. "A shinigami's reiatsu pattern changes drastically when they conceive. And just by looking at your symptoms I know I'm right. If you still don't believe me I can take a test for you… but really, even Yoruichi and Kisuke noticed."

"But something similar happened when Ichigo and I first—well, you know…"

Isshin nodded. "True but that was only an increase of the reiatsu you already had. This time there are _two_ reiatsu surrounding your soul: one is the one you originally had, which also changed; and the other one belongs to someone else. Technically, it belongs to your child."

Rukia felt her body stiffen. It's not like she didn't want to have kids but… wasn't this too soon? And why is Isshin giving her such a sad expression? Shouldn't he be jumping up and down?

"Kurosaki-san—"

"'Otousan' is fine with me," Isshin interrupted, "After all, you're part of the family now."

Rukia smiled. "Otousan. Might you know how far along I am?"

Isshin chuckled. "From the drastic change in your reiatsu pattern I'd say that you're about two months. Add or take a few days."

Rukia gave an even bigger smile. She was going to be a mother. And Ichigo was going to be a father. She stood up and bowed. "Arigato, otousan! I must go and tell Ichigo—"

"Rukia-chan…"

Rukia stood up straight and stared at the now darken face of Isshin. "H-hai?"

Isshin motioned her to sit back down as his smile disappeared. "I'm sorry but you must not tell Ichigo."

"What?" Rukia whispered but loud enough that he could hear.

"I'm sorry," Isshin continued, "But Ichigo must not know of his child."

"Why?"

"Rukia-chan—"

"Why?!" Rukia yelled. She knew something was wrong. Here is the man whose been pestering her to have his grandkids for the past few months since she and Ichigo got together, but now he looked like he didn't want one! "I don't understand! What's going on? Why are you acting like—"

"Rukia," Isshin brought out his serious tone that immediately quieted the woman, "Calm down and I'll tell you."

Rukia wasn't calm but she did shut up. Her breathing was still heavy and she was getting irritated.

Isshin sighed as he got ready for his long talk. "This is going to be a long explanation. Please refrain from interrupting until I'm done." He paused and saw Rukia nodding. "Thank you. As I was saying, you are pregnant… but this isn't a normal pregnancy."

Rukia gulped. She didn't like where this was going.

"Your child has obtained a huge amount of reiatsu from both you and Ichigo. Now normally a child with both shinigami parents goes through this… but not to this extent. You are only in your first trimester and the child's reiatsu is so large that I could detect it quite easily as could the others. It almost feels like that of a rookie shinigami."

Rukia couldn't believe what Isshin was saying. Was her child that strong?

"Now this is probably because you have an amazing amount of reiatsu yourself, but Ichigo has a LOT more. And I emphasize the word 'LOT'. When Masaki was pregnant with Ichigo, she almost lost her life because of his overbearing reiatsu that she had to contain and control. And I'm afraid you might… no, I'm certain you'll go through a similar ordeal."

Isshin paused to see if Rukia was following. She was sweating but nodded for him to continue.

"Anyways, I was one of the few shinigamis with reiatsu of such level. But Masaki also had them too. I'm going to tell you a little history of myself. I was a shinigami who was in charge of a different sector in Japan. A few months before I got promoted to a fukutachiou I went to my old station to finish my last few missions. But I never expected to meet a little girl who could see spirits. She lived with her grandparents who also had a small amount of reiatsu and she inherited her powers from them. I didn't know why but I was intrigued by this little girl so I often visited her. A lot of the times were because a hollow was trying to attack her."

Isshin paused, closing his eyes. Memories were coming back.

"I pretended like the child annoyed me when she kept following me around but in reality I enjoyed her company. When my last mission was done, she was sad and cried, begging me not to go. I was heartbroken. I promised her that I'd return to visit so she promised that she'll never forget about me. But it wouldn't be years later until I returned and at that time I quickly became a taicho. I've been busy but I never forgot about that little girl. When there was a huge mission that needed the involvement of a taicho, I immediately took the mission and visited the human world. It was to last for days, maybe even weeks so Urahara gave me a gigai. I didn't know this then, but when I arrived at the human world, my life changed drastically."

Rukia smiled, knowing what he meant. "You met okasan."

Isshin chuckled as he nodded his head. "She was in her third year at her university. And she was damn beautiful. As soon as I saw her I knew it was her. At that moment, an epiphany hit me. This was _my _Masaki, and she will always be _my_ Masaki. But for some stupid reason Soul Society's rule about 'no interaction with humans' came to my mind. I still had a mission to do so I turned around and tried to walk away. But… my Masaki saw me and immediately came after me. I was shock to find out that she still remembered me. She took me back to her apartment, explaining how she moved out of her grandparent's house and was now living on her own in the city. I found out that she was pretty lonely despite having so many friends around her. So I decided to keep her company until the end of my mission. I had no other place to stay anyways. But then, something unexpected happened..."

Isshin paused as a serious expression came over. Rukia swallowed hard and waited for the older man to continue.

"She became pregnant with Ichigo."

* * *

O.o

Things are getting crazy! Find out Isshin's reason in the next chapter!


	12. The Reason

**Author's Note: Here is the final part of today's upload. I'll try and upload the next chapter soon. Sorry if it seems like the story is moving along to quickly. Like I said, I want to move on with the story before it conflicts with Kubo's original story. I might create a sequel that is a bit more safe so I'm giving you guys a head's up!**

**Isshin goes into more detail about Rukia's pregnancy and its possible dangers. Again it is short but it's full of HELLA stuff. If things don't make sense, sorry. But I recommend reading it carefully and slowly because it helps.**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach...Sorry

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**FYI:** I uploaded three chapters today!! Yay!

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Chapter 11: The Reason

* * *

Rukia looked at Isshin and was getting worried because the silence had been going on for too long.

"Otousan?"

Isshin immediately looked up with a startled look but then eased out at seeing Rukia. "Ah, sorry about that Rukia-chan. I was just thinking about something. Now, where was I…"

"You just told me that okasan became pregnant with Ichigo."

Isshin snapped his fingers with a goofy face. "Righto! Anyways, my beloved got pregnant. Don't ask why I decided to sleep with her or how that even happened… Actually, maybe you should know—"

Rukia shook her head frantically, not wanting to know about how Ichigo got conceived.

Isshin laughed at her reaction. "HA HA HA! Don't worry Rukia-chan! I'm not going to go into _those_ details. But I'm sure you know of it anyways," he winked at the blushing woman in front of him. "But let me explain how it was possible to get Masaki pregnant when I'm but a soul in a gigai."

"Oh," Rukia relaxed a bit, "That is interesting. I'm kind of shocked about my pregnancy too."

"Well, do you remember who gave me my gigai?"

"Urahara."

Isshin nodded. "And who gave you yours?"

"Ura—" Rukia suddenly stopped as realization hit, "You don't mean that he actually—"

"Yup," Isshin continued, "That man was able to create gigais that had all—and I mean_ ALL_—the necessary components to make it into a real life human body. Haven't you heard from the Twelfth Division talking about how they've noticed that your first gigai, from when you first met Ichigo, had so much detail that they were shocked beyond belief?"

Rukia rubbed her chin as she thought back. "Yes, I believe someone told me… but I wasn't quite sure what they meant by that."

"Well it's like this. A regular gigai from Soul Society only has three aspects: the five senses, the digestive system, and the overall exterior of the body. These enable a shinigami to easily blend in with the humans. For example, if a shinigami befriended a human, they could easily go eat and take a dump without looking suspicious. BUT! Kisuke wanted to go beyond that. That is why he created a gigai that could hide reiatsu so it would make the shinigami more human. And this wasn't the only new improvement. Kisuke wanted the gigai to be _completely _like a human so he created a reproduction system. It wasn't until _after_ I left Soul Society that I found out I was his first experiment in his new gigai… and a successful one at that. Ichigo was born with my blood running in his vein. And now I have three children that are actually mine. I was pissed at Kisuke at first but now I have to bow down at that man."

Rukia let out a small giggle. So Urahara was behind all the blessing.

"But," Isshin suddenly became dark again, "Now I want to tell you why Ichigo was a problem."

Rukia gulped. She really didn't like this serious version of Isshin.

"Ichigo should never have been conceived, but when he was, Masaki and I were so happy that there was no way I was going to leave her. My mission was done and as a taicho I had to return to Soul Society. Masaki kept trying to send me back, despite her desire not to. She said that too many people depended on me, and that she would be fine as long as I visit to see our child once in awhile. I was about to follow her instructions. But when I stood before the senkaimon to return to Soul Society, I couldn't. I stood there for who knows how long, debating in my head what to do. In the end, I ran back to Masaki, abandoning my duties as a taicho and as a shinigami. Nothing was more important to me than the woman that I love and our child that was growing in her wombs. I still had my gigai and so we decided to run. We came here, to Karakura. It was a safe and quiet town that I knew Soul Society would never have thought I'd be there. I later met an old man who was running this clinic by himself. I asked him if I can help, though I had no medical license. The old man still took me in, and allowed me and Masaki to live in his home. He helped us survive as I studied for my medical license and after Ichigo was born, he gave the clinic to me…

"But that was not the problem. The problem happened while Ichigo was still inside Masaki's womb. I had HUGE reiatsu and Masaki had a lot as well, thus she was able to see me all those years ago. And her reiatsu changed as she tried to keep control of Ichigo's reiastu but it slowly affected her health. Kisuke and Yoruichi had to help me with fighting off Hollows and distracting Soul Society so that they wouldn't notice us. He created a medicine that helped conceal her and Ichigo's reiatsu to an extent, but she was still weak. Apparently just sustaining Ichigo's huge reiatsu in her was taking a toll on her life. Not to mention how me being there was also affecting her. Apparently Ichigo's reiatsu increased more and more when I was present, almost feeding off of it. Anyways, Kisuke didn't think Masaki would make it. Thankfully I befriended Ryuuken by that time and he agreed to help."

"You mean," Rukia interrupted, "Ishida's father?"

"That son of a bitch attended the same college as Masaki. He noticed her because of her reiatsu." Isshin suddenly stopped. He crossed his arms across his chest and pouted. "Even though he'll never admit it, I knew he had a crush on my Masaki, so we didn't get along too well at first."

Rukia laughed, totally understanding the situation. After all, Ichigo and Uryuu are not so friendly right now, though they relied on each other immensely.

Isshin scratched his head as he continued. "Anyways, that pussy agreed to help us. He created a special room underneath the hospital that he worked in and brought us there. Masaki had to stay completely sealed away from society until Ichigo was born because as days past, Ichigo's reiatsu kept getting stronger and stronger. If Masaki was left outside, not only would Soul Society have detected us, but all the Hollows and Menos as well. And when Masaki went into labor… well, let's just say she almost didn't make it."

When Isshin paused to reflect on the past, Rukia decided to speak up. "Did the same thing happen when okasan got pregnant with Yuzu and Karin?"

"No," Isshin shook his head, "Though they obtained some reiatsu that was still in me, I lost most of if before Ichigo was born, mostly because I wanted to stop him from taking any more of it. And when Masaki gave birth to Ichigo, she lost all of her powers, thus preventing her from seeing that damn Hollow on that fateful night."

"I see…"

"Anyways, the reiatsu that Ichigo inherited was so immense that Kisuke had to conceal it within the body. Most of his powers weren't awakened until you came and triggered it, Rukia-chan," Isshin smiled.

Rukia blushed but her smile faded. "But, what does this have anything to do with me and my child?"

Isshin kept smiling but it was now sad again. "Because both you and Ichigo have substantial amount of reiatsu which your child has inherited. More than what Ichigo had inherited from us. If you were to stay here, too many Hollows and Menos will be attracted to it, and not to mention that when the child is born, people might die."

Rukia eyes widen at the last comment. "What? Die?"

Isshin nodded. "As I said, Kisuke had to conceal Ichigo's reiatsu but he couldn't do it alone. It was so strong that Yoruichi, Ryuuken, Tessai, and I had to contribute as well. It took a lot of our powers to sustain Ichigo. And Masaki almost died from the intense power because at that point she lost all of hers and couldn't stand up to it. Apparently a small earthquake erupted in Karakura that caused a few accidents in the hospital above, but thankfully nothing too serious. Still, that does not excuse the fact that Ichigo brought a huge blanket of power that almost engulfed the humans. Even the hidden room couldn't contain all the reiatsu inside its walls. And your child has more reiatsu than Ichigo had when Masaki was still in her first trimester. If this is the rate the reiatsu is going to increase for your child, then it might kill too many people, suffocating them under its reiatsu. And worse, if Ichigo is continually present, the child's reiatsu might increase in greater amounts, attracting too much attention from Hollows and Arrancars. So we must keep Ichigo away from you and your child for as long as possible."

Rukia looked away, unable to say anything.

"Rukia-chan," Isshin continued, "I'm not saying I'm against this pregnancy. I'm very happy and excited for you two. But it seems that your child might hurt too many people. And don't forget that Gin, Tosen and many Arrancars are still out there. If they noticed this then they might try and take away the child."

Rukia just nodded as she felt tears forming in her eyes.

"Go to Soul Society."

Rukia looked up. "What?"

Isshin nodded his head. "They will help you with a safe deliver and the captains will help with concealing the reiatsu in the child like we have done for Ichigo. And because you'll be surrounded by strong, _controlled_ reiatsu everywhere it might increase your chance of survival."

_Survival_, Rukia repeated that word over and over again in her head and it did not sound good. So this child might cause her death… "But why can't I tell Ichigo?"

Isshin sighed as he rubbed his temple with his forefingers. "I know this may sound foolish but it's the truth, so please try and understand. Ichigo has reiatsu. A LOT of reiatsu that he can't control. And too many Hollows are attracted to him as it is. If this child was to be born here then it would mean utter chaos. And with Ichigo around it'll only make things worse. But in Soul Society the reiatsu can be controlled."

Rukia was still confused. "Then can't Ichigo stay with me in Soul Society when the child is born?"

Isshin shook his head. "If the child keeps taking in Ichigo's wild and enormous reiatsu, it means trouble for both human world AND Soul Society. The child might become too strong for you to carry throughout an entire pregnancy, and in the end it might kill you and the others before or after it is born. And besides, if Ichigo was to know he still would try everything that he could to figure out ways to reach you. This would take a toll in your life as well."

"Why is that?"

"Well," the older man scratched the back of his head, "You will be wasting a lot of reiatsu just to keep the child alive, and thus become weak and almost powerless. If Ichigo is around he might crush you since he still doesn't know how to control that massive reiatsu of his."

Rukia sighed as she slowly nodded her head.

Isshin noticed her worry and asked, "Rukia-chan, do you still wish to have this child?"

Rukia was quiet at first but then she looked at him with determined eyes. "Of course."

Isshin stood up and walked over to Rukia. He placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "If everything goes well, you can then return home with the child. Ichigo will be waiting, as will we all. Just don't tell him yet. Wait until after the child is born."

Rukia cleared her throat as she tried to speak. "Wh—when will I be…leaving?"

"Well," Isshin looked at the calendar behind him, "It seems that the child's reiatsu isn't yet big enough to be detected _too_ far away from here. If you take the pills that Urahara is going to deliver later today, I'd say it's safe to say that you can stay here for another two weeks."

Rukia stood up and bowed. "Arigato, otousan."

Isshin watched as the future mother-of-his-grandchild slowly left his office. He let out a long, depressing sigh as he looked outside through the window. "Masaki…please help us."

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OMG. what's going to happen? Poor Ichigo... well, wait a few more days and find out what happens. I have a midterm this week so I might be late in posting up the next chapter. I'll still try my best so I hope you guys don't leave me!! (begging on my knees)

Here's a little something to look forward to: Rukia tells Ichigo the sad news and Byakuya finds out about Rukia's pregnancy. OMG! .


	13. How Long?

**Author's Note: ME SORRY!! I wanted to post the new chapters faster but my classes were taking up too much of my time! So as a treat I decided to upload SIX chapters!! Hope you enjoy them! I barely got sleep last night as I wrote them... it was exhausting. So forgive me if there are grammatical/spelling errors. And if the story seems boring all of a sudden or if things seems to be moving really fast, I apologize. I just want to move the story along fast. **

**But here is the plan!: this summer I'm hoping to come back to this fanfic after I'm done with it, and add new chapters and better editing. So expect to see a better version of this fanfic in a couple of months!**

**This chapter is exactly what I told you guys about in the previous chapter. Byakuya finds out about Rukia's pregnancy... but the story might have the characters a bit off because I can't really image how Byakuya would react. There are so many theories but none of us are too sure...**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach

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Chapter 12: How Long?

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Rukia walked back to her room, wiping away the last of her tears. She looked up and smiled as her eyes caught the sleeping figure of her child's father. After a few more seconds of staring, Rukia made way to the bed and slid in.

"Mm, Rukia?" Ichigo slowly blinked open an eye as he felt Rukia getting in the bed.

"Sorry," Rukia whispered, "Did I wake you?"

Ichigo shook his head as he lightly grabbed her waist, "No. But why are you up? Feeling sick again?"

Rukia looked down at Ichigo and brushed away some of his orange locks. "No, I'm feeling much better. I was just asking your father about this sickness."

Ichigo moved a bit closer and set his head on her lap. "And what did he say?''

Rukia looked up and fought back the tears as she remembered what Isshin had just told her. "Well—its—I'm—It's just a flu."

"See, I told you," Ichigo smirked.

"Yeah," Rukia whispered as she continued to stroke his orange hair to help him go back to sleep, "You were right." She looked out the window as birds flew through the thick morning fog that slightly distorted the sun's rays.

--

Rukia was sitting by herself as she kept looking out the window. It was now a sunny afternoon on this beautiful Sunday, although her insides were acting completely opposite. Isshin, after telling Rukia a good excuse to use, left the house with the twins so she could talk to Ichigo.

"Oi, Rukia."

The said woman turned around and saw Ichigo walking in the room with nothing but a pair of sweat pants and a towel over his wet head.

Ichigo rustled his hair with the towel as he sat down on the bed next to Rukia, "You've been staring off all day. What's up?"

"Nothing," Rukia smiled, "Just recovering from the flu."

Ichigo snorted, not satisfied with the answer but decided to stop pestering his sick girlfriend.

Rukia looked at him and studied him. She was going to miss the way he snorted. The way his scowl would sometimes worsen when he was worried about her. The way he caresses her tenderly. The way he always fought back whenever she yelled at him…

"Ichigo."

"Hmm?"

Rukia sighed as she sat up straight. "I have to tell you something. It's pretty important."

Ichigo pulled the towel off his head and looked at Rukia.

"I…I have to leave…for awhile."

"What?" he questioned.

"Well," Rukia started to fumble with her fingers, "I have to return to Soul Society for awhile."

"How long?"

"About… well, you see…about six months."

"WHAT?!" Ichigo backed up and looked at her with disbelief. "SIX MONTHS?! Rukia! That's half a year!"

"I know!" Rukia replied, "It's just that—"

"No, you're not going!"

"Ichigo!" Rukia glared at his sudden response, "You are in no position to say whether or not I can go!"

"Yes I do!" Ichigo interrupted, "I'm your boyfriend and I'm not letting you go!"

Rukia could feel the blood pumping faster into the vein in her head. "You have no say in the matter!"

"Oh, I _do _believe I have a say in this! What can possibly be more important than you staying here with me?!" Ichigo yelled as he stood up to leave.

Rukia knew that if she let him go, things would get difficult. She had to convince him _now_. So she jumped up and wrapped her arms around his torso before he could take another step and spoke in a soft voice. "Ichigo… they need me for a very important mission." When she got no response she kept talking. "Ukitake-taicho had gotten worse and needs someone to take care of Thirteenth Division and their mission for awhile. I've been chosen to do this."

Ichigo sighed as he grabbed Rukia's hands and fumbled with her fingers. "Why you? Why not Kiyone or Sentarou?" he asked in a soft voice.

Rukia walked around and smiled up at Ichigo. "Because they fight too much. And Ukitake-taicho thought I proved myself as a leader during the war."

Ichigo let out another sigh as he embraced the woman in front of him. "I can never win against you in an argument."

Rukia nodded against his chest, feeling a bit more relaxed.

"When are you leaving?"

"In about two weeks," she replied, "I'll be later informed of the specific date."

Ichigo scratched his head as Rukia stepped out of their embrace. "Fine. Just promise me that nothing bad is going to happen and that I don't have to fight against the entire Gotei 13 to get you back."

Rukia slapped his arm which earned her a small yelp from Ichigo. "Please, I can take care of myself."

"Whatever," Ichigo snorted.

--

Isshin returned home after a good few hours. Yuzu rushed into the kitchen to start dinner and Rukia decided to help with whatever she could. While she was talking with Ichigo, Isshin had taken upon himself to go over the happy yet sad news of her pregnancy with the twins. They promised to act normally around Ichigo, but whenever the orange-haired brother wasn't around, the girls (yes, even Karin) would hug Rukia and comfort her.

Ichigo walked down from his bedroom and noticed Karin running around the living room. "What are you looking for?" he asked.

"My soccer ball," she replied, "I wanted to warm up a bit now that the weather got warmer."

Having nothing else to do Ichigo decided to help out. He looked under the table, behind the shelves, heck, even in the cupboards (much to Yuzu's dismay). But they couldn't find the ball anywhere in the house. "You sure the ball is even here _in_ the house?"

Karin scratched her head with a frown. "Ah, mo! I don't know anymore!"

"Looking for something?"

Ichigo and Karin turned around to see none other than Renji, still in his shinigami form, standing by their front door, tossing Karin's soccer ball up and down in his hand.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Ichigo asked.

"Who cares," Karin walked up and grabbed her ball from his hand, "At least he found my ball." With that she quickly got her shoes on and walked outside.

Ichigo snorted as he motioned Renji to join him on the couch.

"Renji?"

The red head turned around and smiled widely at Rukia who just walked out from the kitchen. "Oi, Rukia! How've you been?"

Rukia smiled sweetly and sat next to Ichigo who was grunting with annoyance.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I'm just checking up on some stuff. Kuchiki-taicho is going to come by later too," Renji announced as he stretched on the couch. Ichigo grunted again, not really wanting to see the brother of his girlfriend who was still unaware of their relationship (which is a good thing because Ichigo knew that if Byakuya did know then he would have been castrated by now).

"Hello!" Yuzu called out as she walked over with a tray of food. She set it down on the coffee table and sat on the other side of Rukia. "Will you and Kuchiki-taicho be joining us for dinner?"

Renji smiled widely, liking the idea of free food. "Now that I got an invitation looks like I'm staying for the night."

"Why?" Ichigo glared but cried in pain when Rukia elbowed his ribs.

Yuzu picked up the plate and handed it to Renji. "Try some of these appetizers. I've been experimenting with new food recipes."

Renji excitedly grabbed a handful of the food and stuffed it into his mouth.

Ichigo looked at the red head and felt like gagging. "Can't you eat with your mouth close? Seriously, you're making the rest of us lose our appetite."

Renji only snorted as he kept eating. He looked over to see Rukia also looking at him with disgust. He swallowed his food and brought the plate closer to Rukia. "You should try some too."

"No thanks, I'm—" Rukia's words got cut off when the food was under her nose. Her face suddenly turned pale white and she quickly brought her hands up to cover her mouth. As soon as she smelled the food her insides started to turn and she felt like vomiting.

"Rukia-neesan! Are you okay?" Yuzu asked with concerned as she noticed the sudden change in Rukia's demeanor.

"Rukia, what's wrong? Your reiatsu seems out of whack," Renji sat up and looked at his sick friend.

Ichigo also sat up and started to rub her back. "She's fine. She's just a bit sick from the flu."

"Sick from…what?" Renji questioned.

"A stomach flu. She's been sick for a few weeks now, throwing up all morning," Ichigo replied as he continued to comfort her.

At that point Isshin decided to make a grand entrance. "ICHIGO!"

"Not now," Ichigo sternly glared at his father before he could make jump.

Isshin calmed down and walked over. After taking one look at Rukia he smiled and patted Ichigo's shoulder. "Son, why don't you go to the market and buy some fluids, like juice. Looks like Rukia-chan still isn't healthy enough to eat anything."

Ichigo nodded, though he was reluctant to leave her. Rukia looked over and gave him a weak smile which was enough to send him out the door.

"How are you doing?" Isshin asked.

Rukia took in a deep breath and leaned back against the couch. "I'd be better if the food was gone."

"I'm on it," Renji called out as he grabbed the rest of the appetizers and shoved it into his mouth.

Rukia looked over at Yuzu and smiled. "Gomen, Yuzu," she apologized.

Yuzu shook her head and tried to help Rukia by massaging her arm. "It's not a problem. I should have remembered that tuna makes you sick."

Suddenly Isshin and Renji sensed a huge reiatsu appear before them. Hell butterflies fluttered in as the senkaimon appeared and opened. A leg stepped out, followed by the body of the Sixth Division Taicho, Kuchiki Byakuya.

The kenseikan-wearing man looked around the room as the senkaimon disappeared behind him. Renji jumped onto his feet and bowed to his captain. Byakuya barely acknowledged Renji's presence because he was too busy staring at his sister who was bowing as well.

"Rukia."

"Hai, niisama."

Byakuya took a step closer and eyed his sister. "What is going on? You seem sick and your reiatsu is off," he spoke with his emotionless tone.

Rukia bit her lower lip, unsure how to respond. "Niisama…"

Renji looked at his friend with a questionable brow. He looked back at his captain, thinking he should answer in stead of his friend. "Apparently she's sick, Kuchiki-taichio. According to Ichigo she has been throwing up a lot lately and it's been going on for quite some time."

Byakuya was still looking at Rukia and from the expression on her face he knew that that wasn't all. He turned his attention to Isshin who trying to avoid eye contact. "What is going on here, Kurosaki?"

Isshin gave him an awkward smile as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, you see—"

"I'm pregnant," Rukia quickly interjected.

There was a long pregnant pause in the room. Tension was getting thicker as Byakuya and Renji stood still. Then suddenly—

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Renji screamed.

"Renji! Don't use such language when Yuzu is around!" Rukia glared at him as she covered Yuzu's poor ears.

Renji looked at his friend with utter disbelief. "Don't get all maternal on me, Rukia! What do you mean you're pregnant?! Why are you pregnant?! How can you be pregnant?! Why did you even do _it_?! Who's the father—It's _HIM_ isn't it?! Why, when I get my hands on him—"

Before Renji could run out of the house to go after Ichigo, Isshin stepped in front of him and grabbed his shoulders. The older man looked into Renji's eyes with a menacing expression which quickly shut him up. "You will stay here and listen to everything Rukia-chan has to say."

Renji tried to argue back but he didn't want to fight against Kurosaki Isshin. This crazy old man wasn't joking; he was giving an order! So Renji reluctantly stepped back and looked at his foot, unable to face anyone in the room.

Byakuya was quiet during Renji's outburst. He was still looking at Rukia with his usual expression but inside he was going crazy. "Well, aren't you going to explain yourself to me?"

Rukia looked away and her hands curled into a fist. Byakuya was getting impatient and slowly he started to show it.

"Rukia, are you even aware of what you did? Not only have you decided to create an intimate relationship with that boy but you also invited a man into your bed who isn't your husband. This would bring disgrace among the Kuchiki Clan and our name shall forever be considered shameful by your foolish and humiliating actions—"

"Last time I checked my family doesn't have a shameful name," Isshin sneered.

Byakuya glared at the man who rudely interrupted.

"Niisama," Rukia spoke with a firm tone, "I am NOT ashamed of my actions."

"Since when did you learn to talk back to _ME_, Kuchiki Rukia?!" Byakuya yelled, his voice steadily rising with each word.

Isshin stepped into Byakuya's line of vision, which was directly in front of Rukia. "That's enough Kuchiki," he spoke in a threatening tone.

But the angry older brother would never let anyone order him around. In a blink of an eye Byakuya pulled out his Zanpakotou and pointed it towards Isshin, merely inches away from his throat.

"You will stay out of this Kurosaki," Byakuya snarled.

But Isshin didn't even flinch. He gave Byakuya his cocky grin and said, "Sorry but I have no intention of 'staying out' when you are threatening to harm _my _grandchild and _my _daughter-in-law."

During this entire time Rukia turned even more pale, scared and angry at how things were turning out. And even though she wanted to defend her own child, there was no way Byakuya would even listen to her opinion. She only hoped that Isshin wouldn't do anything stupid. But it seems like her prayers were ignored because by now deadly reiatsu was seeping out from both men as they glared at each other.

"Do not think for a second, Kurosaki, that I'd hesitate to kill you," Byakuya glared, "But it is not _you_ that I want dead."

"Even if you want to kill Ichigo I don't think it'll be easy. Afterall, he is capable of dodging your Senbonzakura. But if you are referring to my grandchild…well, why don't you check for yourself just how _special_ it is," Isshin winked.

Byakuya froze at Isshin's comment, though his blade was still in its deadly position by Isshin's throat. He slowly shifted his gaze to Rukia who was staring right back with the same level of intensity. But as Byakuya slowly and carefully focused on his sister's reiatsu, he raised (dare I say it) his eyebrow.

He quickly returned Senbonzakura back into its sheath and concentrated more on Rukia's reiastu. "Interesting," he spoke in his usual, emotionless tone.

Renji looked between each person in the room. It seemed like everyone, even Yuzu who had been hidden behind Rukia all this time, seemed to know what was so 'interesting.'

"Taicho, I don't understand. What are you talking about?" he asked his captain.

But instead of answering, Isshin looked at the door and cringed as he turned back to Byakuya. "We'll discuss about this a little later. Right now both you and your fukutaicho must act like you don't know of this pregnancy."

"What are you talking about?" Renji repeated.

Isshin nudged his head towards the door. "Ichigo is almost here. And he doesn't know about this 'surprise' and it is to stay this way until _after_ the child is born."

"What?! That's utter nonsense—"

"Understood," Byakuya interrupted. Renji looked at his captain with shock but Byakuya ignored him.

At that point Ichigo entered the house and gave Yuzu the bag full of drinks. He looked up after taking off his shoes and walked into the living room. "When did you get here, Byakuya?" Ichigo asked nonchalantly.

Byakuya didn't answer (which didn't surprise Ichigo) but Renji stomped forward and grabbed Ichigo by the collar.

"You bastard!" Renji yelled, rage flaring in his eyes.

"What the fuck?!"

"Abarai," Byakuya stepped up and grabbed Renji's wrist, "You will stop this foolishness at once."

"But taichio—" Renji quickly shut his mouth when Byakuya suddenly sent him a deadly glare. Renji swallowed hard before releasing Ichigo.

The confused orange head was about to ask what was going on but Rukia lightly pulled on his arm.

"Ichigo, I want to go lay down a bit," she spoke softly, still looking pale.

Ichigo looked at Rukia for a moment before sending glares at Byakuya and Renji. Without another word he grabbed Rukia's hand and guided her to their room.

Once the two were out of earshot, Isshin turned around and motioned the two shinigami to join him in the front of his clinic.

Byakuya and Renji followed Isshin without saying a single word. Suddenly Isshin opened the clinic's door and two other people walked in.

"Hello minna-san!" Urahara waved his fan

"It's good to see you again, Byakuya-kun," Yoruichi teased.

Byakuya only fingered his scarf as he ignored the two new people joining their circle. He turned his attention back to Isshin. "Kurosaki, you better give me all the detail," he threatened.

Urahara stopped laughing and looked around the room with an observing eye. _So it's time._

Isshin nodded as he cleared his throat. "Well, it's like this…"

* * *

...

I really did try my best with creating a pissed off Byakuya who was trying to hide it. Sorry if you didn't really agree with it. I'm still trying to improve on my stories and technically i'm still a bit of a noob at this, hehe

anyways, to the next chapter!


	14. What Are Friends For?

**Author's Note: Here is the second part of today's update. **

**I wanted to write a little bit about Ichigo and Rukia's friends finding out about the pregnancy, but sadly I couldn't take it as far as I wanted because of writers' bloc. Hopefully I'll be able to fix it in the summer. But some time has been spent talking about Isshin and pals so enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach

* * *

Chapter 13: What Are Friends For?

* * *

Ichigo and Rukia were sitting in their class, feeling utterly tired. Rukia didn't get sick that morning but they were up all night discussing about ways they could keep contact. Urahara was already busy working to update her spirit phone so she could use it to call Ichigo in the human world.

Ichigo wanted nothing more than to spend his remaining two weeks with only Rukia but the damn school was taking away that dream. He's been sitting through lectures after lectures that seemed irrelevant in life. Even Uryuu looked bored, although he was taking down all the notes with much detail (and Ichigo already decided to copy his later).

_Ding Ding Ding_

Finally! Lunch!

"ICHIGOOO!" Keigo made another dive for his orange-haired friend, but only got the air knocked out of him when Ichigo punched him in the stomach.

"What do you want Keigo?" Ichigo asked annoyingly.

Keigo immediately jumped back up as if he never got hit at all. "The weather is finally warm so let us return to our party of manliness on the roof!"

And before Ichigo could protest, he was being dragged by Chad, Uryuu and Mizuiro. And here he had hoped to spend a peaceful lunch with his girlfriend.

Rukia was planning on joining them when Orihime popped up with Tatsuki and dragged her outside, away from everyone else.

"What's going on, guys?" Rukia asked. The three were now standing alone behind the gym. Her two friends were looking at her with concern and urgency.

"Kuchiki-san, are you alright?" Orihime asked with eyes that looked like it was on the verge of tears.

Rukia swallowed hard and pulled out her fake charm. "Why, of course I am Inoue! Why would you ask that?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because your reiatsu-thing seems out of whack," Tatsuki scowled.

Rukia's fake smile dropped as she looked between her friends. "So you noticed."

"Of course!" Orihime nodded, "And please tell us what is wrong. Aren't we your friends?"

Rukia sighed as she leaned against the wall. She looked back at the two and smiled. "Thanks for worrying about me."

"No problem," Tatsuki smiled, "NOW will you tell us?"

Rukia nodded as she started her long talk…

**Few Minutes Later**

"Kuchiki-san!" Orihime cried as she clung onto her petite friend.

"I'm going to kill that bastard!" Tatsuki cracked her knuckles.

Rukia could only laugh as she calmed her friends. "Really, I'm fine. And I'm happy so please don't worry."

Orihime pulled back and looked at Rukia with her tear-stained face. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Rukia patted Orihime's chestnut hair and shook her head with a smile. "I'm afraid not. But don't worry because I'll be in good hands."

"So when exactly are you leaving?" Tatsuki asked.

"Next weekend. So please be careful when you're around Ichigo," Rukia begged.

Tatsuki reluctantly nodded her head.

"Who else knows?" Orihime asked.

"Well, of course Ichigo's family, Urahara and his workers, Yoruichi, and almost all of Sereitei by now," Rukia responded.

"Are you sure I can't help with anything?" Orihime asked again.

Rukia smiled as she said, "Well, I'd appreciate it if you guys can keep a watchful eye on Ichigo. Who knows what kinds of stupid things he'll do while I'm gone. And make sure he knows nothing about this until after the baby is born."

"Don't worry about that. I'll get Chad and Ishida to help out too," Tatsuki winked. "Though I still can't believe that idiot's inability to sense something so obvious as this."

Rukia laughed and nodded her head in agreement. Tatsuki and Orihime then announced their plans on how to keep Ichigo busy.

"I know!" Orihime clapped her hands together as she smiled, "Let's title this operation: _Keep Kurosaki Ichigo-kun Clueless of his Child which is now growing inside Kuchiki Rukia, who will leave for several months so Kurosaki Ichigo must not Know."_

The two other girls stared at Orihime for a few seconds, getting an earful from the long title.

Tatsuki decided to take him out most of the nights to festivals and school gatherings. She also needed an extra person for her martial arts competition, so Ichigo would make the best option. Orihime wanted to send him out of the country and perhaps make him join the circus… of course Tatsuki stopped her before she got too carried away in her fantasies.

Rukia laughed and helped plan their little project. She was glad to know that her friends were here to take care of things. And Ichigo's family would also contribute to make things easier for her…

But in reality she really wanted Ichigo's comfort over everyone else's.

--

It was a typical night in the Kurosaki Clinic as everyone sat in the living room to watch a late-night movie.

Ichigo still hadn't noticed the change in Rukia's reiatsu, although he has noticed she was tired a lot more lately. He watched her from the corner of his eyes as Rukia's head slightly bobbed up and down.

"You want to go bed?" he silently asked to not bother the others.

Rukia shook her head and smiled. "I'm fine, don't worry."

Ichigo sighed as he leaned back on the couch to watch the movie. Sensing he was still worried, Rukia gently placed her head on his shoulder and leaned towards him. Even though they've been doing this a lot more often in public and his family didn't really care anymore, Ichigo still couldn't stop the blush on his face.

He was just about to get comfortable when suddenly—

_Hollow! Hollow! Hollow!_

Ichigo's Shinigami Badge suddenly erupted during the movie.

"Shit," Ichigo mumbled.

Just then Rukia's spirit phone started to go off. She pulled it out of her pocket and read the information that was typing on her screen.

"Looks like two Hollows. They're not that powerful but still more than the ones you've been chasing after these days."

Ichigo smirked as he quickly used his badge to escape his body. "About time I get some real action."

Rukia took Ichigo's badge and was about to use it—

"Matte," Isshin grabbed Rukia's hand to stop her. Both shinigamis looked at him with a blank stare when Isshin smiled at Ichigo and spoke, "Son, please go without Rukia-chan. There is something I want to talk about."

Though Ichigo didn't notice, Rukia could sense the seriousness in his tone. She quickly turned back to Ichigo to give him a reassuring smile. "Do as he says. After all, it wouldn't be fun for you if I get in your way and fight off the Hollows, leaving you bored."

"Che, fine," Ichigo pouted as he ran out the door and used shunpo to where the Hollows were.

Isshin turned back to his daughters. "Yuzu. Karin. Go to my room to watch the rest of the movie. I have something important to talk about with Rukia-chan."

Yuzu nodded as she stood up and grabbed her twin's hand. "Come on Karin-chan! Yukie-san is about to run away!" She cried, running upstairs to see what the main character might do next.

Rukia looked at Isshin and asked, "Is there something you wish to tell me, otousan?"

"Ah! I like hearing that!" Isshin joked. Then he spoke in a calm, but serious, tone. "Rukia-chan. I haven't told you this yet because it hadn't crossed my mind until now."

"What is it?"

"How many times have you left your gigai since you've gotten pregnant?"

Rukia rubbed her chin as she thought about this. "Well actually, I don't think I ever have. I've been pretty sick so Ichigo wouldn't let me fight with him."

"Rukia-chan" Isshin continued, "I recommend you do NOT leave your gigai until after the child is born."

Rukia raised a questioning eyebrow at the ex-taicho. "Why not?"

Ishin rubbed the back of his neck. He really hated being the bad guy here. "Well, I think it might harm the child."

Unconsciously Rukia placed a protective hand over her stomach and wore a shocked expression.

"It's like this: Right now your gigai is no different from a real human body. And if you were to exit your body, your shinigami form will hold the _soul_ of the child but not its human body. So the body might die or get damaged since it would no longer have a soul. This might not apply when the child is actually born but until then, any sudden change might affect the unborn child. And because when a child is still inside the womb, it is dependent on the mother for its survival."

Rukia scratched her head in utter confusion. "I don't understand. If Ichigo can exit his body and reenter it, why wouldn't it apply to the child?"

"Ummm," Isshin scratched his bearded chin as he thought for a second, "Well, it's because while still in the womb, it is still developing and if anything was to happen it might affect the child that could in turn also affect its growth. Also, if you are planning on living here, I do think it'd be best to leave the child in a human form rather than giving birth to only its soul. This might even help concealing the enormous reiatsu."

Rukia sighed as she nodded her head. It was pretty depressing to find out you were not allow to continue your job anymore because of your pregnancy. But Rukia lightly rubbed her stomach and smiled. It was still better to have this child then chasing after the Hollows.

Isshin stood up and walked over to the kitchen. "Have you taken your pills today?"

"Yes. I take them everyday just like you told me," Rukia responded.

Isshin nodded his head as he returned with two glasses of juice. "Good, and never forget about them. Every time I sense a Hollow I'm afraid it's after my grandchild."

Rukia chuckled as she accepted the glass and drank the refreshing juice.

In a few minutes Ichigo returned but with a bad gash on his back.

"What the hell did you do?" Rukia asked with a venomous tone as she helped him move into the living room.

Ichigo only grunted as he sat down, still trying to calm his breathing. Then he felt Rukia's palm against his back as she started kidou.

"Maybe we should call Inoue," Rukia muttered. But before she could stop her kidou, the green glow under her hand expanded and immense reiatsu surged from it.

"What is that?" Ichigo asked, trying to turn around from his position.

But as soon as he finished asking his question the gash was totally healed. Rukia had 'panic' written all over her face. She turned around to face Isshin but couldn't say anything as his serious expression was staring intently at Ichigo's back.

_Beep Beep Beep_

_Hollow! Hollow! Hollow!_

Both Ichigo's shinigami badge and Rukia's spirit phone went off at the same time.

"More Hollows?" Ichigo asked Rukia as she flipped open her phone. She nodded and Ichigo was about to get up when Isshin grabbed his shoulder and pushed him back on the couch.

"You had your fun already," Isshin grinned, "Now let daddy have some too." Isshin grabbed the shinigami badge and slammed it on his chest as he escaped his gigai and ran out the front door.

Ichigo jumped back into his body and looked back at Rukia who was suddenly looking pale. He placed a hand on her shoulders and asked, "You okay?"

Rukia jumped upon feeling someone touch her, but calmed down when she looked into Ichigo's worried eyes. She lightly smiled as she leaned into his body. "Yeah… still a bit tired."

Ichigo wrapped a strong, protective arm around Rukia as he ran his other hand through her hair. He didn't like the scared look on her face just then. Something was going on that was making her nervous and he hated the fact that there was nothing he could do.

"Ichigo?"

"What?"

Rukia looked at him for a second before bringing her hand up and punching him from under his chin.

"OUCH! WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR, YOU MIDGET?!" Ichigo yelled as he checked to make sure his jaw was still connected.

"That was for being stupid and getting yourself hurt," she glared.

Isshin was running around, chasing the Hollows that suddenly appeared too close to his house. He pulled out his Zanpakutou to quickly finish the hunt.

With a large cry, Isshin flew into the air and swung his blade at the Hollow's mask, immediately cutting it into pieces. He then sidestepped when another Hollow swung his spiked tail at him. At the same time Isshin quickly locked his arm and used his other hand to grab the tail to forcibly pull its body closer to him as he jammed his Zanpakutou into the mask.

Soon he was killing off the Hollows one by one without so much as breaking a sweat. It seemed only the weak ones were foolish enough to trace after such a powerful reiatsu.

"Ara. Finished already?"

Isshin, who landed on the ground, turned around to see Urahara and Yoruichi looking back at him with a grin.

"Che, they were nothing but weaklings," Isshin snorted as he returned his Zanpakutou into its sheath.

Urahara chuckled as he fanned himself.

Yoruichi looked around at their surrounding, trying to sense if there were any more Hollows around. "So what was that reiatsu that suddenly called them out?" she asked.

Isshin sighed as he and his two friends decided to jump from roof to roof just to make sure everything was safe. "Well, that pathetic son of mine got a hit while getting rid of a Hollow. So Rukia-chan decided to use her healing kidou but it suddenly went out of proportion and immense amount of reiatsu came out of it."

Urahara tipped his hat back a little to expose a serious expression. "Has she been taking her pills?"

Isshin nodded.

Urahara returned his hat to its original position and sat down on the roof they were currently standing on. "If so much power came from just a small kidou then I wonder just how powerful this child will be."

"I can make a guess," spoke out a new voice.

Isshin turned around and grunted upon see Ryuuken walking up to them with a cigarette in his mouth.

"Must you smoke around me?" he cringed.

Ryuuken answered by blowing a puff of smoke at Isshin. The ex-shinigami waved his arm frantically in front of his face to wave off the smoke. When it was gone, he was about to jump on Ryuuken for a good strangle but he was already talking with Urahara.

"If that child is already giving Kuchiki that much power then expect it to be much stronger than that idiot's kid," Ryuuken told Urahara.

"Who are you calling an 'idiot'?" Isshin yelled. But the others totally ignored him as they continued with their serious conversation.

"Has Sereitei found out about the child yet?" Ryuuken asked.

Isshin nodded. "Byakuya made a 'friendly' visit not too long ago. I had to tell him about everything. He agreed to inform the rest of Gotei 13 about this and they should be preparing for Rukia's arrival. And Yamamoto will be assigning Ichigo whole bunch of missions to keep him busy and away from Soul Society."

"Will Soul Society be able to control the child?" Yoruichi glared at the ground below the building that they were on.

"I'm sure they'll be fine. After all they will have the contribution of all the captains and their seated officers," Urahara replied, "But what I'm worried about is how the reiatsu might affect those not strong enough to stand up against it."

Isshin sighed as he walked over to the edge and looked up at the sky. "Looks like no matter how much we want to avoid it, in the end my grandchild just might lose its innocence a bit too early."

"Is there any way to limit its reiatsu? Its power right now is immense so we should stop it from increasing," Yoruichi pointed out.

Urahara sighed as he hid his sad face behind his fan. "It'd be nice if we could do that but sadly the only way to prevent the child's growing reiatsu is to take it out of Kuchiki-san's womb. So pretty much we'd end up killing it."

There was a short pause as everyone sighed with disappointment. This pregnancy might be more problematic than they thought.

"Well, there really is no use in complaining about it now. It was bond to happen someday, and hopefully it'll happen only this once," Ryuuken said as he threw down his cigarette and stepped on it.

Isshin nodded as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm sure this won't happen to my future grandchildren. The child now only got so much power because both parents couldn't control their new powers. If the two can learn to control it and be extra careful, then I'm sure there won't be any problems."

"Looks like Mayuri is going to have a field day with this," Urahara joked.

"But the problem now is: what about our new enemies?" Ryuuken asked.

There was another pause.

"What's happening in Hueco Mundo?" Isshin asked Yoruichi.

She sighed as she flipped her long purple hair. "I met Nell again but the information is the same as last time…except that things now seemed even more eerie."

"I don't know who it is, but I'll bet Gin and Tosen has something to do with it," Ryuuken commented.

Urahara nodded as he stood up and dusted off his pants. "I'm going to ask Sereitei to dispatch a group of shinigamis to join Yoruichi next time she goes. And this time, we're planning on making a full investigation of the place."

Isshin yawned, stretching his arms over his head. "Whatever. If it's a new threat, then I'm sure it won't be too hard for us to beat."

"But do you really expect us AND Soul Society to be ready to fight so early after the last war?" Ryuuken raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sure you won't have to worry too much about that," Urahara chuckled, "Any new threat will not happen for a long time so we'll have a few months, maybe even a few years before the second war starts."

"And we'll be ready by then," Isshin grinned.

* * *

O.o I wonder what'll happen with this new threat... Well, this might not really happen until the sequels... but just read on and see what happens!


	15. Getting Ready

**Author's Note: This chapter might seem a bit boring. I just needed something to show the passage of time. Also, I wanted to create a sweet moment between our couple. Hope you understand... so please don't gag if this chapter seems weird, lol**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach

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Chapter 14: Getting Ready

* * *

One more week.

Rukia only had one more week before she had to leave. And now, she could slowly feel the change in her reiatsu. Isshin and Urahara had given her almost daily check up with positive signs that the child was healthy. Yoruichi kept making fun of Isshin on how stupid his son was to not have noticed Rukia's reiatsu changing.

This was true. It seemed everyone knew except Ichigo. At school, Rukia confronted Uryuu, and Chad with Orihime and Tatsuki standing by. And of course everyone in Soul Society found out after Renji and Byakuya returned home. Rukia had to inform them all the detail as to why she couldn't tell Ichigo and why she was going to leave soon. They all sympathized with her and helped to relieve her of as much stress as possible.

Renji and Byakuya were still making things pretty hard though. Several times the two would sneak back to the human world to try and kill Ichigo but Rukia kept holding them back. They finally got back their senses when she started to cry. Of course Ichigo was oblivious to the whole matter.

And now here she was, in the middle of the shopping center, waiting for Ichigo to go on their date. He kept going on and on about how they should go out everyday since they wouldn't be able to for at least six months. But today, Rukia had been standing a full ten minutes in front of a baby store she was passing by.

In the display window was a set of clothes, blankets and toys for newborns and she couldn't help but smile. Rukia remembered how whenever she walked by this store before, she pictured herself walking in with Ichigo to buy clothes for their child. But it never really interested her too much before.

And now she was about to have a child. Never had she thought a child would be coming this soon… and without Ichigo's knowledge. She let out a sigh, which she has been doing a lot for the past several days.

"Oi, Rukia!"

The said woman jumped as Ichigo ran towards her.

"Sorry for being late," he gasped for air, "Dad needed help with something."

"It's okay," Rukia stammered, hoping beyond hope that Ichigo hadn't noticed her standing in front of the baby store for a long time. Her prayers have been answered when Ichigo kept talking.

"Com'on, we gotta go if we want to catch that movie." Ichigo grabbed her hand and walked off to the theaters.

Rukia gave one last look at the baby store and turned her attention back at the street ahead of her.

That day Ichigo took her to watch the movie she's been dieing to watch. Ichigo was only grateful it wasn't another Chappy story. Instead it had a lot of action which got him all pumped up. He was only able to get rid of it when a Hollow came by.

Rukia stayed in the sidelines as she yelled at Ichigo about how stupid he was for missing his target. Ichigo would yell back by saying he was doing it on purpose since there was no reason to quickly finish the fun.

It was then Rukia noticed that it felt like the two were in the same situation during the first two months of her stay in Karakura. And not even once had Ichigo asked her why she didn't fight against the Hollows anymore. She didn't know if it was a good thing or not, to have an idiot for a boyfriend.

"Tadaima," they chorused.

By the time they got back home, it was already dinner time. Isshin was still busy at the clinic while the twins were home doing what they often do: Yuzu making dinner and Karin watching T.V.

"Okaeri," the twins chorused.

Rukia walked into the living room and sat next to Karin. "Anything good on?" she asked.

Karin shook her head and responded, "There was a good game on but it's already over," she pouted.

"You really should look for other hobbies," Ichigo joked as he walked over and ruffled his sister's black hair.

"Bug off," Karin pushed him aside and continued flipping through the channels.

"Did you guys eat anything yet?" Yuzu asked from the kitchen.

"Wanted to but Rukia wanted to eat your food instead of somebody else's," Ichigo replied.

"That's because those other places made me nauseous," Rukia retorted.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. "I thought you weren't sick anymore."

"That's not the point!" Rukia slapped the back of his head.

"Che, baka mono," Karin mumbled.

But her brother heard her. "What did you call me?!"

"Stop harassing your sister, Ichigo!" Rukia placed her hands on her hips.

"Shouldn't you be on my side?"

"ICHIGOO!"

"AUGH!"

In a matter of two seconds, Isshin came flying through the doors and landed his two feet on Ichigo's face.

"That is not how you treat woman!" he lectured with his hands on his hips, "It would seem I still have a lot more to teach you in how to live a life of Love!"

Rukia watched on as Ichigo and Isshin fought against each other like they do everyday. A smile crept up on her face, knowing full well that she was going to miss this.

"You're lucky you don't have to go through with this for a long time, Rukia-neesan," Karin whispered.

Rukia shook her head at the eleven-year old. "I must disagree."

--

Rukia was sitting on the bed, waiting for Ichigo to return from his shower.

Tomorrow is the day.

The petite woman sighed as she leaned against the bedpost. Tomorrow she is to leave Ichigo for several months to secretly have their child. How time flies when you don't want them to…

At that moment Ichigo came inside and closed their door. Without glancing over at Rukia, he walked over to his drawer to grab something.

"What are you doing?" Rukia asked.

"Here," Ichigo walked over and he tossed her a wrapped up box.

"What is it?" Rukia shook the present against her ear.

Ichigo grunted as he threw his towel on the chair. "Just open the damn thing and you'll know."

Rukia gave him a glare before she ripped off the gift wrap. She then gasped upon seeing what the gift was. It was a baby set that included a blanket, small clothes, and a pair of shoes. They were all white with several black butterfly patterns at the corner of each item.

"Ichigo…"

The man sat on the bed and rested his chin on her shoulder, looking at the gift he bought her. "I saw you gawking at that thing a few days ago so I decided to buy it for you."

Rukia was still speechless as Ichigo grabbed the container that held everything from her hands and opened it, taking out the contents.

"I don't know why you women have a thing for buying this even when you're not even pregnant. But I know you wanted it," Ichigo smiled as he held the shoes on each finger and played with them, "And, I wanted to let you know that I see a future with you that includes a human being wearing this. So you better come back to me."

Rukia could no longer contain the tears in her eyes. She slowly let them out as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Thank you," she whispered, "Thank you… You have no idea how much this means to me."

Ichigo smiled as he wrapped his strong arms around her tiny waist and leaned back against the bed. "Just promise me you'll return."

Rukia nodded her head, "I promise."

She moved her head towards his and placed a kiss on his lips. It was suppose to be light but it became more passionate as Ichigo rolled on top of her and delved his tongue deeper in her throat.

--

It was already late in the night. But Rukia was still looking at the gift she had just received from Ichigo. The man turned over in his sleep and felt his arm bump against his girlfriend's leg.

"Sheesh," he muttered, "Aren't you going to sleep?"

Rukia pulled the covers slightly higher over her exposed body and shook her head. "I just love your present."

Ichigo chuckled as he sat up and wrapped his arms around Rukia's waist. "Does that mean you also see a future with me?"

Rukia let out a small giggle while leaning back against his chiseled chest. "I don't see myself with anyone else except you."

That earned her a kiss from Ichigo on the top of her head. The two sat there, watching Rukia play with the baby blanket and shoes through the moonlight coming in from the window. The house was dark and quiet as was the entire neighborhood. It seemed almost like they were the only ones left…

Rukia was the first person to break the silence. "Ichigo?"

"Hmm?"

"Have you ever thought about what names you'd give our children?"

Ichigo placed his cheek on her head and thought for a few seconds. "I don't think so. What about you?"

"Well," Rukia said, "I haven't really thought about it either… but now that I am, I think I would like to name a girl 'Aiko.'"

Ichigo nodded his head. "The 'beloved.' I like that."

Rukia smiled. "I knew you would. And since I thought of a girl's name, you should make a boy's name."

"Hmm," Ichigo thought. And then something struck. "I got it."

"What is it?"

"If we have a boy, I want to name him 'Keitaro.'"

Rukia smiled widely. "The 'blessed.'"

Ichigo nodded his head and grinned, "Our children are going to be the 'beloved' and the 'blessed.'"

Rukia felt her chest tightening but tried to keep her calm demeanor. She was glad Ichigo was facing her back because he would have been able to tell something was wrong just by looking into her eyes. He would often tell her how he loved her violet eyes because they held the truth that she always tried to hide.

* * *

Okay, so that present thing will become significant later on... or at least it will be just a little bit. Still, who says it's bad to create a sweet moment between our favorite couple?

Just a reminder, the night Ichigo gives Rukia the gift is set several days after Rukia was staring into the baby shop. Thought you might want to know in case you missed the part about the 'next day' being the day Rukia leaves for Soul Society... which is in the next chapter!


	16. Goodbye For Now

**Author's Note: Rukia is finally leaving for Soul Society. I tried to make things a bit sad, but again, I didn't have enough time. Sorry, but I hope you guys will still like it!**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach

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Chapter 15: Goodbye…For Now

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Rukia got up the next morning and didn't want to look outside.

It was raining.

The raven-haired woman let out a sigh as she looked at the man sleeping next to her. He looked so peaceful and relaxed. Rukia was a bit jealous since she hadn't been able to sleep well for the past few days.

She turned around to fully face him and smiled. Carefully guiding her fingers across his face, Rukia studied to memorize the man she had grown to hate and love with all her heart. Tears formed as her fingers gently traced the scars on his body. The scar from Grand Fisher. The scar from her brother. The scars from when he tried to save her from Soul Society. She was afraid that this might be the last time she gets to see her stubborn strawberry.

"Rukia?"

She looked up to see Ichigo slowly opening his eyes. _This might be the last time I get to be in the arms of the man I love_. Rukia could no longer keep in the tears once her violet eyes met his amber eyes. But she kept smiling, trying to keep a happy front.

"What's wrong?" Ichigo asked as he slowly used his thumb to wipe off her falling tears.

Rukia shook her head as she leaned in closer and Ichigo embraced her tighter. The two just laid there for several more minutes, listening to the rain that told them today was the day that they've been dreading.

"We should get up," Rukia finally said with hesitation.

Ichigo sighed and loosen his hold on his girlfriend. Rukia got up and roamed the room to pick up her clothes.

"I'm going to go take a shower," Rukia called behind her shoulder as she walked out.

Ichigo yawned and scratched his bright hair. He looked out and grunted upon seeing the huge downpour outside.

After taking their showers, Rukia stayed in their room to pack up a few of her belongings while Ichigo walked downstairs to join the rest of his family for breakfast. It was unusually quiet that day. Even Isshin wasn't jumping off the walls.

"Ohayo, oniichan," Yuzu softly greeted her brother.

Ichigo only nodded his head to Yuzu and then to Karin who responded back the same way. He sat down on his seat and waited for Rukia to join them.

Yuzu walked over and placed the last few plates of food. She looked around and asked, "Where's Rukia-neesan?"

"She's just packing up the last bit of her stuff. She'll be down soon," Ichigo replied.

Karin grabbed her chopsticks and shoved some rice into her mouth. "How are you holding up, Ichi-nii?" she asked with her mouth full.

Ichigo only shrugged as he weakly lifted his chopsticks and looked at his food. "I've never been fine with this since the beginning so how do you think I'm feeling right now?" he groaned.

Isshin patted his son on the back, although only half-heartedly. "Well, what's done is done. So don't show such a sad face when Rukia-chan is here. I'm sure it's hard enough for her."

With a sigh Ichigo nodded, still looking at his food but not eating it. At that moment Rukia came down the steps and joined the Kurosaki's for breakfast.

"Ohayo, Rukia-neesan!" Yuzu cheerfully called out.

Rukia's mouth slowly turned upwards to form a smile. "Ohayo Yuzu, Karin." She looked over at Isshin and lightly bowed. "Ohayo Kurosaki-san."

"I thought I told you to call me 'otousan,'" Isshin winked with his usual grin.

Rukia chuckled as she sat down next to Ichigo and looked at her breakfast. Suddenly she felt something tugging at the end of her dress. Rukia looks down to see Kon facing her. "What do you want Kon?"

"Neesan…" he started but didn't know how to continue.

Rukia noticed the obvious sadness in his voice. But what was she to do? Thankfully Yuzu walked over and picked him up, setting him on her lap as she sat down.

The rest of that morning went like that. Everyone looked like they had something to say but the words just wouldn't come out of their mouth. Thankfully Isshin was, or at least tried, to make things seem normal by ranting off about this and that. Karin would snort like always and Yuzu would just pout when her sister didn't want to join in planning for their future trip.

But Ichigo wasn't even trying. Sure he smiled once in a while when his sisters made a joke, but the fact that he was smiling meant that something was wrong. Rukia didn't make eye contact with him because she was afraid she'd cry. But Ichigo slowly slipped his hand onto hers under the table and gave it a tight squeeze. The small contact of the skin made Rukia quietly gasped, forming some tears in the corner of her eyes. But she distracted herself but continuing her conversation with Yuzu and Karin.

After breakfast, Ichigo took Rukia back up to their room where they quietly sat in each other's embrace on the bed. No sun light came into their room that spring morning. Merely the sound of the rain was surrounding them, making them feel more depressed.

_Knock knock_

"…Who is it?" Ichigo called out.

"_It's time to go_," Isshins voice softly spoke through the door.

When Ichigo heard his father's retreating footsteps, he looked down at Rukia who was hiding her face against his chest.

"Rukia…" he softly spoke against her hair.

Rukia only groaned as she tightened her grip around his torso. Ichigo responded the same way around her waist and took in one long breath, taking in her sweet smell that never ceases to comfort him.

"Com'on," Ichigo reluctantly pulled himself out of her embraced and stood up from the bed. He walked over to his desk and picked up Rukia's bag, slinging it over his shoulder.

Rukia was still sitting w Ichigo had left her, begging that time would stop and let her stay here. But when Ichigo gave her his hand, the petite shinigami sighed as she took it.

Ichigo led her downstairs where his family and Kon were waiting. They all decided to walk to Urahara together and their friends were going to join them there. Ichigo knew he was sad to see Rukia go, but he didn't like the type of atmosphere the others were giving. Rukia was planning on coming back in a few months but his family and friends were acting as if she was going to be executed. Was there something else to Rukia's new mission that he didn't know?

Before Ichigo knew it, they arrived at the shop. The entire time Rukia was walking next to him, hand-in-hand, but she was quiet. She didn't even argue or kick him like her normal self and it was starting to scare Ichigo.

"Kuchiki-san!"

The said woman looked up to see Orihime running towards her. She threw her arms around her friend, hugging the life out of her.

"I-Inoue. Please—"

Orihime quickly released her friend but she started to cry. Tatsuki quickly walked over and whispered into her friend's ear. "You got to stop that! Ichigo is here and things will get worse if he gets suspicious."

Orihime nodded and placed a fake smile on her face as she looked at Ichigo. "How are you, Kurosaki-kun?"

The Substitute Shinigami only grunted as he continued walking into the shop, going down the steps to the underground training room.

As soon as their feet landed on the ground, the senkaimon appeared. The doors slowly slide open and several Hell's Butterflies came flying out. Ichigo cringed as he saw the portal's door. He never really liked that thing because every time it appeared it would remind him of that fateful day when Rukia was first taken away from him. And now it was back to do the same thing again.

Renji jumped out from the portal and looked around to see sad faces. He sighed as he walked over to Rukia. "Hey, you ready to go?"

Rukia didn't respond. She only tightens her grip on Ichigo's hand and looks away. Renji knew this must be eating at his two friends, and what's worse is that he felt guilty for taking Rukia away without Ichigo knowing the whole truth. He knew this was going to come back to haunt him later.

"Com'on," he grabbed Rukia's bag from Ichigo and walked towards the senkaimon.

Rukia sighed as she released Ichigo and went around saying her 'goodbyes." Orihime and Yuzu were crying while the others just gave her a hug or a handshake. Isshin was acting like his usual self, making fake waterworks. But when Rukia was in front of him, he stood up straight and winked at her, giving her a thumb's up.

"Remember, we'll be waiting, my daughter-in-law."

Rukia smiled widely, understanding how this man was now officially acknowledging her as part of his family.

Yoruichi walked over and hugged her. "I'm sorry there is nothing we can do to help," she whispered so Ichigo couldn't hear her, "But always remember that we're here to support you. So never lose hope."

Rukia fought back tears after hearing words of encouragement.

When it finally came time to face Ichigo, Rukia pulled his arm and led him away from everyone else. Nobody really questioned their destination or what they wanted to talk about.

"Ichigo…" Rukia leaned her body towards him, allowing Ichigo to wrap his strong arms around her waist.

"Rukia…" he responded as he placed his cheek on top of her head.

The two just stood there for a few moments, not really saying anything. What was there to say? Rukia could feel her tears ready to burst out and Ichigo wasn't doing so well either.

"I love you," he whispered.

Rukia snuggled her face deeper into his chest. "I love you too."

Ichigo lifted Rukia's face by her chin to meet his amber eyes with her violet ones. He gave her his signature smirk that brought out a small smile from her too. He lowered his lips onto hers, capturing her lips for a long, passionate kiss, fearing the fact that this wasn't going to be a daily thing anymore. And like always, they had an all-out tongue war, fighting for dominance. Actually, Rukia never allowed herself to win: she just played along with him because it only made their make-out session more fervent.

Slowly, the two unwillingly parted from each, panting for breath. But as soon as Ichigo caught the sight of Rukia's teary eyes, he felt his insides turning. He roughly pulled her back into his embrace and placed his head on the hook of her neck, inhaling all of her wonderful scent.

"…Ichigo," Rukia's stuttering voice interrupted their silence, "It's time."

Ichigo tightened his grip until he could hear Rukia gasping from the pain. With a sigh, he loosened his hold and straightened up. He looked one more time deep into her eyes. Rukia was smiling at him… not because she was happy about leaving but because she was trying to comfort him in some ways.

"It's only a few months. We'll see each other again," she said.

Ichigo only grunted as he glared at the seikamon that was still there. "But I hate it whenever you try to leave me. Why can't Soul Society just leave us alone?" he pouted.

Rukia chuckled at his cute expression. She pulled him down to her level and lightly pecked his lips before turning around to walk back to where the others were still waiting.

Ichigo scratched the back of his head and followed his girlfriend.

"You ready?" Renji asked again as soon as she came into view.

Rukia nodded but her expression didn't look excited.

Ichigo stood behind Rukia as she took a step closer to the portal. But before she could take another step, Ichigo wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

From behind her, Ichigo bent forwards and whispered into her ears, "I'll be waiting. So come back home soon."

Just hearing Ichigo telling her to return home to him made it impossible for Rukia to hold her tears back. She didn't dare turn around in case she'd get weak and beg not to be taken away. So she only nodded her head.

"Com'on," Renji softly called out from within the portal.

Rukia took the final steps towards the seikamon and stepped inside. But just before the doors closed, she turned her head back slightly.

Everyone was still standing before the seikamon, waving at her. But she didn't see any of them. The only person that stood out was Ichigo. He had his hands in his pockets and was looking directly back at her. Even though discomfort and sadness was written on his face, he still gave her his smile to give her some reassurance.

Ichigo saw Rukia turning back to look at him. He really didn't want to let her go but knew that there was no use complaining now. So he gave her his best possible smile at that point. And when Rukia saw it, she gave him the same smile before the doors closed completely.

Silence

Slowly, with each quiet, passing moment the group went up the ladder and back to their world. But Ichigo was still standing at the exact spot, his smile now turned into a frown.

He was missing Rukia already.

Damn, he's pretty badly whipped.

"Ichigo," Isshin voice interrupted his train of thought.

Ichigo didn't move but only grunted to assure his father that he was listening.

Isshin walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze. "Only a few months. After that's over, I'm sure Rukia-chan will never have to leave your side again... no matter what the reason is."

Ichigo nodded his head as he turned around and walked over to the ladder. But as soon as he was standing directly in front of it, he stopped.

"Dad?"

"Yes, son?"

Ichigo lifted one hand and took hold on one of the steps. He paused then continued speaking. "When Rukia comes back…I'm going to ask her to marry me."

With those words Ichigo quickly climbed upstairs, leaving his father behind with a baffled expression.

It took Isshin a few minutes to register everything that Ichigo had just said. And when it did, the father looked up and gave a big smile. "Looks like our boy is all grown up…Masaki."

Isshin quickly followed his son back to the shop. As soon as he spotted his orange-haired son, Isshin kicked his foot off the ground and jumped on Ichigo.

"AHH!"

**MEANWHILE**

"Welcome back, Kuchiki Rukia. We will take good care of you."

"Arigatou, Yamamoto-sotaicho."

Ichigo told his dad he's going to marry Rukia!! Yay! but this isn't going to happen until a few chapters so stick with me!


	17. Not Even One Chance

**Author's Note: Once again I just needed a chapter that included several things: the passage of time; the new threat of enemies; and some action. Now i'm not good at describing fight scenes so please help me by using your imagination!**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach

* * *

Chapter 16: Not Even One Chance

* * *

Ichigo let out the nth sigh of the day. It was Saturday afternoon and he was stuck in his room, absolutely bored.

It has been a good month since Rukia left…

To be exact, it's been 31 days, 5 hours, 32 minutes, 45 seconds…46 seconds…47 seconds…

Yes, Ichigo had been keeping time.

The orange head Shinigami Substitute angrily scratched his head as he changed his position on his bed. For several days he's been trying to use his new position in Sereitei to try and sneak in, but Yamamoto would always catch him and send him on a mission that would last for days. In the end, Ichigo has been unsuccessful in reaching Rukia.

_That damn old bastard._ Ichigo pouted.

"Ichigo! Stop pouting in your room and come down here and help me!"

Ichigo felt his blood pulsing through his head but he didn't retort. Afterall, it was true. As he groaned, the orange head heavily lifted himself out of his bed and walked downstairs.

"What do you want?" he glared.

Isshin looked at him with an evil glint in his eyes. His hands were on his hips and his nose was raised high. "My son, no need to waste your youth away in your room. Your darling sisters and I have planned a magical picnic that is sure to help get your mind off of Rukia-chan for a few minutes."

Ichigo looked at his father with disbelief. He grunted as he turned around to return to his room.

"Ichigo, where are you going?!" Isshin yelled as he jumped and clung onto his son's back.

"GET OFF ME!" Ichigo tried to shove his father's beardy face away from him but his father was too stubborn.

In the end it became another all-out war between the father and son. At that point Karin and Yuzu walked out from the kitchen to separate the two.

"Will you stop, Ichi-nii?!" Karin shoved her brother to the side with much annoyance.

"Why don't you tell that beardy over there to stop _first_?!" Ichigo complained.

"How mean!" Isshin started his fake pout and grabbed Yuzu into a hug, "My precious daughters! Tell me why your brother hates it when I'm trying to help him?"

"If you really want to help me than help me figure out a way to get into Soul Society!" Ichigo yelled as he kicked his father further away from him.

When Ichigo's feet left his face, Isshin looked back at his son with a serious look. "Why are you trying so hard?"

"Because!" Ichigo yelled back, "I want to see Rukia but that damn old man has been keeping me too busy with all these fucking missions!"

Isshin sighed as he pushed himself up on his feet. "Ichigo…It's not like Rukia-chan isn't going to come back. Just be patient for a few more months—"

"Would you have been patient if it were mom?"

Isshin became very quiet after hearing his son's question. He looks deep into Ichigo's amber eyes and smirks. "I guess you're right. But there's still nothing I can do to help."

"Why are you so desperate, anyways?" Karin questioned her brother.

Ichigo scratched his head as his scowl deepened. "I know this may sound stupid but on the day Rukia left, at that very last second when our eyes met… I saw something that made me feel very uncomfortable…"

There was silence in the house as Ichigo continued.

"Her eyes seemed worried and it looked like she was hiding something from me."

Isshin cleared his throat as he looked at Ichigo who was still scowling. "Son, I'm sure you were just seeing things."

"Maybe… but I know what I saw."

Just then, Ichigo's ears perked up upon hearing his cell phone going off. Knowing full well who it was, the Shinigami Substitute quickly ran upstairs to answer his phone.

"Moshi moshi?" he asked breathlessly.

"_Hey. Did you miss me?_" the voice of an angel asked from the other line.

Ichigo grinned as he lied on his bed. "You know very well how much I fucking miss you, Kuchiki Rukia."

There was chuckling on the other line and Ichigo followed suit.

--

"So how is Kurosaki-kun doing?" Urahara asked.

Isshin took another shot of sake and glared at his friend. "Shouldn't you already know the answer? I know he's been coming to you everyday to sneak him into Soul Society."

"You boy is pretty desperate," Shinji chuckled.

"I think it comes from the genes," Ryuuken commented as he filled his cup with more sake.

Yoruichi laughed loudly and patted Isshin's shoulder. "True. I remember how crazy you were when you couldn't see Masaki everyday while she was pregnant with Ichigo."

"Funny how my son told me something like that this afternoon. He asked how I'd feel if I was in his position and Masaki wasn't there," Isshin laughed.

Suddenly all laughing stopped and they placed their cups down on the ground.

_BOOM!_

A cloud of smoke could be seen several miles away from where a loud crash was heard.

The group stood up and looked at the same direction. Shinji placed his hand on his head, ready to pull down his mask, and Ryuuken took out a cigarette before calling out his bow. Urahara lifted his cane and smashed into Isshin's head as his shinigami form jumped out.

Yoruichi stretched her legs and looked over at her friends. "Ready for some fun?" she grinned.

Urahara flapped his fan and smiled, evilly. "I think I'm ready for another round of bets."

Isshin nodded as he pulled out his Zanpaktou. "Fine with me. Loser has to do the dishes when we come back."

"Che, what a foolish punishment," Ryuuken snorted.

"If you have something to say then say it to my face!" Isshin lifted his fist.

"I did say it to you, didn't I?" the Quincy smirked.

Isshin let out a flare of reiatsu while turning back to where the crash happened. "Let's hear you complain when you lose!"

With that, all five of them disappeared into the sky as they ran after the new reiatsu in Karakura.

Ichigo was sitting on the table, located outside of the restaurant, and with his group of friends who invited… dragged him to dinner. It was pretty dark outside and they had just finished eating. Now they were sitting around and talking when suddenly they heard a loud crash several miles off.

Ichigo jumped onto his feet along with his friends, and looked at the cloud of smoke.

"What the hell was that?" Tatsuki asked her friends.

"I'm not sure," Ichigo replied, "But whatever it is, it's pretty strong." He pulled out his Shinigami Badge and smashes it against his body to escape into his shinigami form. He looks at Tatsuki, Mizuiro and Keigo, and points at his body. "Take care of me while I'm gone."

Tatsuki nodded her head as she dragged Ichigo's body to the corner.

Ichigo turned to Uryuu, Orihime and Chad. They nodded their heads before taking off towards the direction of the explosion.

Halfway to their destination, Ichigo notices another group of reiatsu not too far ahead.

"Dad?!"

Isshin turns around and waves his hand at Ichigo. "Hello my son! Here to join in on the fun?"

Ichigo ran faster so he could be next to his father. "Any idea what that was?" he asked, totally ignoring his father's previous question.

Isshin shook his head and by that time they arrived at a secluded area near the river. There was a huge crater on the earth but they couldn't see anyone…or anything.

"What's going on?" Chad asked.

Urahara walked closer to the edge of the crater and looked down. "I'm not sure but whatever it was should be around here somewhere."

There was a few second of complete silence when suddenly everyone took a large jump back from where they were previously standing as red flames shot down from the night sky, burning deep holes in the ground.

Ichigo looks up and sees two figures standing in the air looking down at them. They looked like arrancars by the way they were dressed. But there was a red veil that covered their faces.

"Who are you?" Ichigo asked.

One of the arrancars, who had a smaller stature than his companion, snorted as he pulled out his sword from its sheath. "There really is no reason for you to know who we are when you'll be dead in a matter of seconds."

"Don't count on it," Ichigo smirked as he grabbed Zangestsu from his back and swung it forward. Uryuu, Chad and Orihime also readied themselves while Isshin, Urahara, Yoruichi, Ryuuken and Shinji just stood there, staring up at their new enemies with expressionless faces.

The arrancar laughed as he slowly brought himself onto the ground. Pissed off by his cocky attitude, Ichigo jumped into the air to meet the arrancar. "Let's end this quickly!"

In a swift motion the two blades collided against each other and a huge mass of reiatsu poured out from each person.

Shinji was looking at the other arrancar and pulled down his mask. As if on cue, his fellow vizards appeared behind him with all their masks pulled down as well.

Urahara steps forward, holding onto his hat from being blown away. "Ara, looks like we have strong opponents today," he smirked while looking at the arrancar that still wasn't moving. "Would Hachigen-san please form a barrier around this fight? It might get nasty."

Hachigen nodded as he sat down on the ground and concentrated to create a barrier.

The other arrancar finally moved. He turned his face left and right, staring intently at the barrier being formed around them. "Interesting," he spoke.

"Isn't it?"

The arrancar turned around to see Shinji in his mask standing directly in front of him. He swung his blade from the right and stopped before making full contact with the neck. "So, tell me, to whom do we owe this pleasure?"

The arrancar was standing still but no emotion could be detected since the face was still covered.

Ichigo was being pushed back as the arrancar laughed menacingly, swinging his blade everywhere.

"I thought you were that famous shinigami who defeated Aizen-sama! But you're nothing but a weakling!"

Ichigo smirked as he used his strength to push back and stop his attacker. "Then don't let me disappoint you." He jumped back and pointed Zangetsu straight forward. "BANKAI!"

Another mass of reiatsu came out of Ichigo as he transformed into his bankai outfit.

The arrancar looked up and down at his enemy's new wardrobe and whistled. "That's more like it."

They both charged at each other with another attack. The arrancar immediately felt the difference in strength as his sword collided against Zangetsu. He let out another roar of laughter, obviously enjoying the new round of their fight.

Ichigo couldn't help but notice that this arrancar was more wild and attacking like a maniac. Just like him. The orange head smirked upon this realization and was able to turn his defensive moves into offensives one with the swift attack through a small opening.

"HAHA! Looks like you really do have the strength to give me a good fight!" he roared.

Ichigo twisted his arms to swing Zangetsu from the side, but the arrancar swiftly blocked it. "Looks like I'll have to end this pretty quick."

The two took a step back before charging at each other for another attack when suddenly the other arrancar appeared and grabbed his companion's shoulder.

"We must leave now," he spoke in a calm voice.

"Che, and just when it was getting fun."

Ichigo watched on as his enemy sheathed his blade and his partner called out a portal from the air.

The arrancar turned around and slightly lifted his veil to reveal his pale face with five red streaks running across his left cheek horizontally. "Remember me well, my friend, because next time you won't be so lucky."

"What the fuck," Ichigo breathed out as the two arrancars disappeared.

"Ichigo!"

The said man turned around and noticed the barrier disappearing and his companions running towards him.

"Hey, what happened?" Kensei asked.

Ichigo shrugged his shoulder. "No clue. One moment I was fighting that bastard and the next he disappears."

Shinji sighs, his mask now gone. "That other guy was pretty weird. Without me noticing he quickly disappeared from me and arrived here before I could realize it."

Ichigo looked at Urahara and asked, "Any idea on what this might be?"

The shopkeeper shook his head. "I can only bet it has something to do with the new threat in Hueco Mundo."

"I'm going there tomorrow morning with a group of shinigamis. I'll have to report this to Yamamoto then," Yoruichi announced.

Urahara nodded and started to walk back to his shop. "Let's just go home and rest then. Nothing else can be done until more information is found."

What might the new threat be about? Again, maybe not until the sequels... sorry. But on to the next chapter!


	18. Just Need Time

**Author's Note: The sixth, and final update for today. But out of context, I'm sorry if I don't take time to reply to all of you guys who review. I really want to thank you guys personally but again, my personal life is taking up too much time. But I'm still grateful to everyone who supports my fanfic., and you guys are the ones who motivates me to continue with this story. So THANK YOU and I LOVE YOU!!**

**This is a very short chaper... which I didn't realize until after I finished writing it. I remember reading a review from someone who wanted me to not waste too much time with the pregnancy. And I totally agree, so here is the last chapter with Rukia's pregnancy. I wanted to write a sweet moment for our heroine before things starts getting crazy. **

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach

* * *

Chapter 17: Just Need Time

* * *

"… I love you, too… okay, Bye," Rukia smiled as she hung up her phone. She was rubbing her six-month pregnant stomach, which became a daily routine whenever she needed comfort or was talking to Ichigo.

"Rukia."

The woman turned around to see Byakuya walking towards her. "Okarei nasai, niisama," she bowed.

Byakuya nodded his head. "Were you talking to that boy just now?" he asked.

"Hai," she smiled, "summer vacation is almost over so he wanted to know how I was before school occupies his time too much."

"Did you tell him?" he asked as he sat next to his sister and a maid brought out some tea. It became a daily routine for the siblings to share a nice cup of tea outside since Rukia returned.

Rukia took the pot and carefully filled Byakuya's cup with the soothing drink. "No, I have not. And thankfully he hasn't noticed anything."

The man nodded as he silently drank his tea.

Rukia looked back at the garden and smiled. She was holding the baby blanket in her hands and unconsciously started to trace the patterns on the corner.

Byakuya saw this from the corner of his eyes. "I've noticed you've been spending a lot of your time with that blanket. Might I ask what is so important about it?" he asked.

Rukia sweetly smiled as she held the blanket tighter. "It was a present from Ichigo. It's for our baby."

A long silence suddenly surrounded them. Byakuya placed his cup down and sternly looked ahead. "I though you said he doesn't know about the child."

"He doesn't," Rukia answered, "He just caught me one day looking at several baby items. And he thought I wanted one since in the human world most woman have a tendency of wanting such items even when they are not with-child."

"I'm afraid I do not understand," Byakuya said.

Rukia lightly giggled. "Nor do I. But I'm grateful for whatever reason he bought this blanket along with several other items. In fact we've already came up with names for our children."

Byakuya sighed. "I'm guessing that that mean that boy already made plans for the both of you, involving marriage and children."

"Hai."

Another silence filled the air as they drank their tea and watched the always-blossoming sakura trees.

"Niisama?"

Byakuya only nodded as a reply.

Rukia looked at her blanket again before continuing. "May I ask a favor from you?"

"What is it?" he sternly asked.

"This blanket," she held out the item, "I have a set of clothes that matches this. If something happens to me…" Rukia suddenly felt her mouth dry but cleared her throat as she continued, "Please promise me that you'll have the child wear the clothes Ichigo bought as the very first outfit."

Byakuya was silent for a second before letting out a long sigh. He closed his eyes and felt the breeze blowing through his hair. "What might be your reason for asking me this favor?"

"Because I might not be able to do this," she whispered, "And I want the child to know that Ichigo does love his child even though he isn't here with us."

Byakuya looked at his sister. He was about to say something when he suddenly caught a glimpse of red hair sticking out from the corner of his house several yards away.

Rukia, who didn't seem to have noticed, forced back her tears as she smiled at her brother. "I would also like to name the child after the name we had decided three months ago."

"Why are you giving up so easily?" Byakuya asked.

"I'm not giving up," Rukia replied, "I'm just being cautious."

At that point Byakuya decided it would be best to stop. "Rukia, I must go back to my office for a moment."

Rukia bowed to her brother, "I understand."

Byakuya walked towards where Renji was still hiding but stopped before turning the corner. He looked behind his shoulder. "And do not worry. If anything is to happen, I shall take care of your child and deliver it to _him_."

At first Rukia was surprised, but then she smiled, thankful for her brother's kindness. Once his form disappeared and his reiatsu was no longer within the mansion, Rukia looked at the blanket again.

Three more months.

With a sigh Rukia slowly stood up and walked back inside.

Three more months and everything will be over

… hopefully.

Next chapter you'll find yourselves with Rukia who is going to give birth. Crazy things are going to happen. And this fanfic might end within the next few chapters so get ready for the sequel! (which I might start a little less than a month after i finish this... still haven't made a good plotline sweatdrop).

I'll try and update soon, but it might just be one chapter. sorry, but I'm working really fast so don't give up on me!!


	19. The Birth

**Author's Note: THANK YOU once again to those who reviewed!! I'm glad to know that there are many readers of my fanfic. Anyways, I finished this chapter really quickly because it's been stuck in my head all day after getting out of my writer's bloc. Hope you guys like it...**

**As promised, this is where Rukia gives birth. But read to find out the fate of our heroine and her child.**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach

* * *

Chapter 18: The Birth

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Rukia woke up that morning feeling more tired than usual. When she entered her second trimester the pregnancy took a lot of her energy. She had to use her reiatsu to keep control of the child within her womb. And with each passing day it got even more difficult.

"Is anyone there?" she breathlessly called out.

A maid slid opens the shoji doors and bowed, "Yes, can I help you Rukia-sama?"

Rukia slowly lifted one of her arms off the futon. "Can you help me up?"

Without questioning the maid quickly walked over and gently pulled Rukia up into a sitting position. Rukia smiled at the maid and said a small 'thank you.' The maid then excused herself to bring Rukia some breakfast since she wasn't allowed out of her room.

Once the maid disappeared behind the doors, Rukia sighed and leaned back against her arms.

Nine months.

She was finally in the last month of her pregnancy and it was taking a tow on her. Byakuya had to assign three more maids to take care of Rukia who was confined in her room since she entered her final trimester. Rukia wasn't too pleased about getting imprisoned in her room but Unohana insisted that too much movement wear her out too much. She was due in three weeks so it was important to stay extra careful.

Rukia looked outside the window, and saw the rising sun from afar. It was the middle of October now in the human world, but in Soul Society it always looked like spring, or at least in the Kuchiki Mansion.

Rukia tried to shift her body into a more comfortable position when a sudden pain ran across her stomach.

"Ow," she groaned. She started to rub the side of her swollen stomach to try and ease the pain as she would often times do whenever similar pains happened…but nothing was working. Rukia had to bite her lower lip to stop herself from possibly screaming as the pain intensified. She was now hissing as she leaned against her other arm.

At that point the maid returned with a tray of food, but dropped it upon seeing Rukia.

"Rukia-sama!" she ran towards the pregnant woman and knelt down, "Is something wrong?"

Rukia opened her mouth to respond but only harsh breaths came out. She squeezed her eyes shut to try and ease herself. "My…stomach—mph—hurts…AW! IT HURTS!" Rukia screamed as she fell forward and wrapped her arms protectively around her stomach.

The maid finally recovered from her shock and lifted the blanket. And sure enough there was a wet spot between her legs. "Rukia-sama, you're going into labor!" the maid shouted, looking back at the woman. But Rukia was in too much pain to even hear her.

Knowing the time had finally arrived, the maid quickly ran out the door to call Byakuya. But as soon as she slid open the door the man himself was already there.

"What's going on?" he asked with a hint of worry.

The maid pointed at Rukia. "She's going into labor!"

"WHAT?!" Renji, who was standing behind Byakuya, yelled.

Even Byakuya could no longer keep a cool demeanor. "Renji! Quickly gather all the taichos and fukutaichos to the Fourth Division. I am taking Rukia there right now."

Renji nodded and after taking one last look at Rukia, he quickly shunpo'd away to follow orders.

Meantime Byakuya walked into the room and carefully picked up Rukia in his arms. She gasped, feeling more pain jolting through her body from the sudden shift.

Byakuya felt horrible for causing more pain but he didn't have a choice. Once Rukia was well secured in his grasp, he shunpo'd to the Fourth Division, being as careful as he could.

Once he arrived at the building, Unohana quickly opened the door. "I felt Rukia-san's reiatsu and got everything ready. Please follow me!"

Byakuya quickly followed the woman into the building and into one of the rooms that they had prepared several days in advance.

"Unohana-taicho, why is Rukia going into labor now? Isn't she three weeks early?"

Unohana carefully helped Rukia into a better position and answered, "Yes, but this was to be expected. Sometimes a child is born early, or…"

"Or?"

Unohana sighed as she looked at the no longer calm older brother. "The mother can no longer uphold the child's strong reiatsu and must get rid of it. But this could cause major effect to both the mother and child that might even lead to death."

Byakuya's eyes widen. He was about to speak but Unohana pushed him to the door. "Please wait outside with everyone else until the child is born. I'll have one of my subordinates quickly call everyone in once the child is out so ready yourselves for the 'concealment'," She said to everyone else who was now gathered outside Rukia's room.

Unohana walked back in with several of her subordinates, mostly the seated officers of her division. She closed the door and walked over to Rukia who was leaning off to the side, clutching her stomach as if her life depended on it.

"Rukia-san! You must stay focus if you wish to deliver this child!" she yelled.

Rukia only nodded her head but kept wincing in pain.

Unohana spread her legs apart and lifted the sheets. "Isane! Bring me more sheets! Rukia-san is already dilated and is ready to start pushing!"

"H-hai!" the fukutaicho replied as she ran around the room getting everything ready,

Unohana positioned herself in front of Rukia. "Rukia-san, I need you to stay conscious," she paused and Rukia weakly nodded, "Good. When I tell you to push, you must push with all your might. And when I tell you to breath, breath like the way I taught you last week."

Rukia nodded her head again but her breathing was getting heavier. Unohana noticed this but couldn't do anything to the soon-to-be-mother in case it brought more pain.

With Isane now stationed next to her, Unohana looked up at Rukia and nodded.

"Okay. Now, push!"

--

Ichigo was blankly staring at the board. His mind was wandering off to Rukia, wondering what she might be doing at the same time he was sitting there, bored out of his mind. He stifled a yawn and looked back down at his notes.

"Kurosaki," Ochi-sensei called out, "Do you now the answer?"

Ichigo stood up and annoyingly looked at his book. He opened his mouth, ready to answer when suddenly…

_Rumble rumble rumble_

"EARTHQUAKE!" Keigo yelled and everyone dove under their desk.

But Ichigo stayed standing and looked outside. The whole area was shaking violently but this was no ordinary earthquake. He could feel something surrounding Karakura… almost like an immense amount of reiatsu. He looked over at Uryuu who was also standing. He nodded his head and Ichigo knew right away that something wasn't right.

--

"Looks like this is it," Urahara quietly spoke as he snapped his fan shut.

Isshin crossed his arms over chest and nodded.

Ryuuken threw his cigarette down onto the shaking ground and stepped on it. "Seems like we were right; that child is a lot more powerful than your son when he was born."

Isshin sighed as he rested his elbow on his knees and dropped his head into his hands.

The three men were outside of Urahara's store, sipping tea when the earthquake started. Yoruichi was in her cat form, looking intently up to the sky.

"Masaki," Isshin whispered, "Please save them."

--

"EVERYONE IN NOW!"

Starting from Yamamoto to Ukitake, all the taichos entered Rukia's room and quickly surrounded the naked child on the bed next to where Rukia was laying. Their fukutaichos and other seated officers also followed but with more difficulty as the heavy reiatsu surrounded them.

Everyone quickly placed one hand over the other and faced it towards the crying child who was spilling out an immense amount of reiatsu.

They quickly started the incantation, focusing much of their strength into concealing the reiatsu into the child. The captains didn't want to release too much power in case it negatively affected the child, but this would mean that the 'concealment' might take longer than they wanted. Beats of sweat was falling down the seated officer's head, wincing at the immense power that was suffocating many other souls that were too weak. They had to finish this quick before it crushes everyone!

Yamamoto noticed that many were struggling so he released more of his reiatsu on the child. He heard several shinigamis gasping for breath outside of the room and he could sense several souls also suffering from miles away. Knowing it was now or never Yamamoto and everyone else poured as much reiatsu into the incantation and finally, after what seemed like hours of hell, the huge power surrounding them slowly lifted.

Byakuya looked down at the crying child and noticed that the reiatsu had been finally concealed. Everyone dropped their arms and let out a sigh of relief. Unohana quickly ordered several of her officers who were less affected by the power surge to go out and check up on anyone who might be in critical condition.

"It's a boy."

Byakuya looked at Renji who was now pointing at the child.

"It's a boy," he said again. And when Byakuya looked down at the newborn he did see the _essentials_ that proved the child was, indeed, a boy.

Kurosaki Ichigo and Kuchiki Rukia were now parents of a baby boy.

"UNOHANA-TAICHO!"

Everyone in the room turned their attention to Isane who was leaning down against an unconscious Rukia. "SHE'S NOT BREAHTING!"

Byakuya's eyes grew wide. He was about to step forward when Unohana stopped him and pushed him outside with the others again.

This was the second time Byakuya got shoved by a person who wasn't a noble!

…But this really wasn't the time to think about that.

"I need time alone to do this!" She reasoned and shut the door.

Renji sat down on the floor and dug his fingers into his hair. "Dammit!" he shouted at no one in particular.

Kira and Hisagi sat next to the red head and patted his shoulder. Everyone else was quiet, sympathy showing on their face.

"Ken-chan," Yachiru quietly spoke on Kenpachi's shoulder, "Is Rukia-chan going to be okay?"

Her captain only grunted and shrugged his shoulders.

Yamamoto was leaning against his cane and walked over to the window. "It looks like it's going to rain," he spoke out.

Byakuya followed his gaze to the sky and noticed dark, gray clouds making their way throughout Soul Society.

After what seemed like hours of listening to the rain, the door to Rukia's room opened. Everyone turned their attention towards the door and saw Unohana walking out with Isane supporting her. She looked exhausted.

"Unohana-taicho," Ukitake stepped forward and helped Isane support the weak captain, "What happened?"

Unohana swallowed hard and took one deep breath before speaking. "Rukia-san lost too much reiatsu while carrying the child. And right now she barely retains any of it."

Several people gasped.

"You mean…" Renji started but couldn't finish.

Unohana nodded. "Just like when she gave all her powers to Kurosaki-kun over a year ago."

"Shit," Renji hissed as he looked away.

Byakuya looked at Unohana and asked, "So what will happen to Rukia?"

At this time Ukitake and Isane sat Unohana down on a chair. The usually calm woman shook her head with a sad expression. "I did everything I could but while we were concealing the child's reiatsu Rukia-san was being suffocated by it and almost died. She was in worst condition since she was closest to the child than anyone else with weak reiatsu. Luckily I was able to help her breathe again so she is still alive. But…" Unohana paused as she closed her eyes. "She is unconscious right now and I don't know when she'll wake up."

Byakuya closed his eyes as well as he leaned his back against the wall.

"But she's out of danger now, right?" Hinamori asked.

Unohana shook her head, much to everyone's dismay. "I'm afraid not. She is still losing strength and though she is fighting, Rukia-san barely has reiatsu in her. We can only wait and hope she can regain some of her power…and pray that she loses no more."

Hinamori buried her face into her hands to stifle her cry. Hitsugaya walked up and patted her shoulder.

Renji was frantically looking around, unsure what to do but the others were looking away, also not sure what they could do to help.

Byakuya walked up to Unohana. "Where is my nephew?"

Unohana blankly stared at him for a second before looking at Isane and nodding her head. Her fukutaicho walked back inside the room and returned with a small bundle in her arms. Isane stuck her arms out to Byakuya who quickly, and carefully, grabbed the child and held him close to his chest.

The baby was still naked, only covered by the white sheets. He was no longer crying and was already clean from the birth. It was then Byakuya noticed some black hair sticking out of the baby's head… but as the baby blinked, Byakuya noticed that his eyes were dark amber like _that_ guy.

"Renji," Byakuya called out.

"Hai," the Sixth Division fukutaicho breathed out his reply.

"Return to my mansion and bring me all the items Rukia had prepared for the child."

"Sir?" Renji questioned, confused about his orders.

Byakuya calmly looked at Renji and nodded. "We are going to the human world."

* * *

I thought it'd be longer but it actually came out to be only a few pages... still, not bad, right? hope you guys liked it.

I really wanted to focus mostly on Rukia but it kind of talked a lot more about Byakuya and how he was dealing with the birth. hmmmmm... oh well! the next chapter will be mostly about Ichigo...

The little cliffhanger is exactly what's going to happen in the next chapter. I'm already on it so hopefully I can post it sometime this week... but again, no promises!


	20. The Unexpected Visitor

**Author's Note: Once again I'd like to thank everyone for their reviews. I'm almost done with this fanfic... maybe four or five more chapters. Then I'll start the sequel once school let's out. The story might seem rushed (especially since it's near the end) but I'm just desperate to end this so I can return to my other fanfic. that I haven't finished yet. I'll still try my best to make this betta.**

**This is the awaited chapter where Ichigo finally finds out. Sorry if the story is a bit sad here and for the next few chapters. It's suppose to be like that... but it won't go on for too long so please be patient with me. A lot of stuff are going to happen and I tried my best to write down the images in my head but it was pretty hard. So help me by using your imagaination!**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach

* * *

Chapter 19: The Unexpected Visitor

* * *

Ichigo was on his way home with Chad, Uryuu, and Orhime close on his heels. After the earthquake it started to rain. Ichigo kept cursing as he used his bag to cover himself. They all quickly ran to the Kurosaki Clinic trying to figure out where that strong reiatsu came from.

Ichigo opened the door and everyone quickly walked in. "What the hell is up with this rain?" he asked no one in particular. With a sigh, he led the group to the living room but stopped when he saw a group of people already sitting on his couch. "What's going on?"

His four friends looked into the living room and noticed Isshin sitting with Urahara, Ryuuken, Yoruichi, Shinji and Hiyori, while Tessai, Jinta and Ururu were sitting on the kitchen table with Karin, Yuzu, and Kon.

Isshin looked up to smile at his son. "Okaeri," he softly spoke.

From the fact that his father didn't jump on him to give his usual greeting, Ichigo knew something was wrong. And it could very well be involved with that earthquake.

Ichigo dropped his bag and walked to his father. "Something is going on isn't it?" he asked but got no answer. Ichigo sat next to his father and sighed. "Does this have something to do with that reiatsu that caused the earthquake?"

"So you've noticed?" Shinji asked.

Ichigo nodded. "I know I'm bad at sensing reiatsus but I'm not that much of a klutz."

"Che," Hiyori snorted as she crossed her arms over her chest, "You could have fooled me."

Ichigo only glared but Uryuu snapped him out of it by whacking him behind the head. The Quincy then looked around the quiet room and sighed. "Is it what I think it is?" he asked.

The other's nodded and Uryuu shook his head.

Ichigo looked around and noticed that even Chad, Orihime, and his sisters seemed to be aware of what Uryuu was talking about expect for him. "What's going on? Do you guys know something that I don't?"

Urahara pulled his hat lower and spoke out to the orange head. "Kurosaki-kun, it seems we haven't been completely honest with you lately."

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked the shopkeeper.

Urahara was about to continue when suddenly everyone became still, feeling great amount of reiatsu coming near the house. And it seemed that the reiatsu was coming from several people.

Just then there was a knock on the door. Yuzu quietly ran up to the door, opened it, and gasped.

Ichigo stood up from his seat followed by everyone else. What he saw next was something unexpected.

Led by Byakuya, several shinigamis entered Ichigo's home and they all looked exhausted.

_Okay, something is definitely going on_, Ichigo thought to himself. He was about to speak when Isshin walked up and interrupted his train of thought.

"How is she?" Isshin asked Byakuya.

The kenshiken-wearing man shook his head and Isshin sighed. And for some reason Ichigo had a sick feeling in his stomach.

_How is SHE?_

"Who are you talking about?" Ichigo asked his father.

Isshin slowly looked back at his son and shook his head. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

Ichigo could feel sweat forming inside his fists. He was starting to breathe hard. "Why?" he asked.

Yoruichi walked towards Ichigo and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Ichigo," she quietly called out.

Ichigo only shrugged the hand off and stared at everyone. His patience was running out. "What's going on?" he asked again, "It seems like you guys all know something except for me. Why is this? And who are you talking about?"

Everyone avoided Ichigo's eyes, hoping to not be the one to give the bad news. Ichigo felt like throwing up from the tense atmosphere.

With a sigh Urahara folded his fan and made his way towards Ichigo. "Kurosaki-kun. Allow me to tell you what's going on, but in one condition. Please reframe from speaking or doing anything until _after_ I've finished talking."

Ichigo swallowed hard, already aware that he wasn't going to like what he was going to hear. But he nodded.

"Thank you," Urahara said as he continued, "The reiatsu that caused the earthquake a few hours ago belonged to a newborn child that had just been born in Soul Society."

"But how can a child bear so much reiatsu?" Ichigo asked, already breaking his promise to the shopkeeper.

Urahrara nodded. "That is because the parents are possessors of great reiatsu themselves. But the odd thing is most children inherit a small amount of reiatsu from either one parent or both. But this specific child seemed to have inherited all, if not more reiatsu than the parents. Thus it caused the huge earthquake that traveled into this world."

Ichigo nodded. He thought for a second and asked, "So what stopped this earthquake?"

"The officers of Gotei 13 had to combine their powers to conceal the reiatsu into the child."

"But what does this have anything to do with me?"

Urahara paused, hoping someone would take over to tell Ichigo the next part. "Well—"

"Kisuke," Isshin interrupted, "I think I should tell Ichigo the rest."

Urahara nodded and let out a sigh of relief. He took a step back so Ichigo could look directly at his father.

Isshin fully turned his body to Ichigo and sighed. He cleared his throat to start talking. "Ichigo, that child with the immense reiatsu… well, the child is actually yours and Rukia-chan's."

Silence.

Everything and everyone was still as if time had stopped, waiting for the new father to react.

"W-what?" Ichigo stuttered in a small voice.

Everyone looked away, afraid to see the expression on Ichigo's face. It was full of hurt, anger, pain, sadness and mostly confusion.

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo asked, the gears in his brains starting to turn really fast.

Isshin stepped forward. "Ichigo—"

"Rukia went to Soul Society to take over for Ukitake. She said she was going to come back this month," he said. Thinking it was some joke Ichigo lightly laughed as he looked around the room with 'panic' written in his eyes, "I don't know what you're saying. Stop bullshitting with me."

Isshin sighed as he looked away.

"Pops," Ichigo looked at his father with a pleading look, "Please tell me you're lying. Please tell me Rukia didn't have a child without me knowing."

"I'm sorry," Isshin said quietly.

Ichigo shook his head. "Why? Why are you sorry? What are you trying to say?"

"Ichigo—"

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!" Ichigo yelled at his father.

Isshin closed his eyes at the sudden burst of his son's anger. "Rukia-chan had been taken to Soul Society, not to take over for Ukitake, but to give birth—Ichigo!" Isshin cried out as Ichigo walked past him and towards the front door where Byakuya and others were still standing. Isshin grabbed Ichigo's shoulder. "Where are you going?!"

Ichigo shoved his father away. "Where else?! I'm going to Rukia!"

"You can't," Renji blurted out.

"And why the hell not?!" Ichigo asked.

Hitsugaya stepped up when no one responded. "Because she's in critical condition. If anyone is to interrupt Unohana-taicho's concentration right now, Rukia-san could die. And if you're there with your crazy reiatsu, the same consequence will happen."

Ichigo stopped dead in his tracks as Hitsugaya's words sunk in. He looked with wide eyes at the young genius. "What?"

This time Hitsugaya dropped his gaze and didn't say anything.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Ichigo ran up and grabbed Histugaya by the collar, "YOU BETTER TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON OR ELSE—"

"Ichigo!" Isshin shouted as he and the others pried the crazy orange head off of the Tenth Division's taicho, "Calm down—"

"DOES IT LOOK LIKE I CAN CALM DOWN?!" Ichigo yelled at his father, "First I was told that Rukia left to have my child, and now you're telling me she's dieing?! What the fuck is wrong with all of you?! How could you have kept this from me?!"

Ichigo finally released Hitsugaya but in turn grabbed his father's collar and shoved him against the wall. "You better have a good reason as to why you've kept this from me!"

"Ichigo…I'm sorry," Isshin replied.

But an apology wasn't enough for the enraged orange head. Ichigo shoved his father to the side and was about to hit him when Shinji, Urahara and Yoruichi quickly stood next to him and grabbed him.

"Let go of me!" Ichigo shouted, "You fucking bastards have no right to protect this jackass!"

"Ichigo, enough!" Yoruichi shouted as she pushed Ichigo to the side.

Ichigo bumped into the wall but kept staring at the people around him. "What is wrong with you people? You all kept this from me when I should have been involved in every part of Rukia's pregnancy!"

Urahara tried to talk. "Kurosaki-kun, you need to understand—"

"Rukia might die and I can't even see her," Ichigo whispered then suddenly raised his voice. "WHAT'S THE POINT IN LIVING IF I CAN'T BE WITH HER ANYMORE?!"

"You still have your son," Byakuya calmly replied.

Ichigo stopped shaking.

He looked up at the cold man who didn't seem shocked by his outburst.

"Son?"

Byakuya motioned Hinamori to walk up and hand Ichigo the bundle she was carefully carrying. Ichigo looked down and saw a baby. A baby wrapped up in… a white blanket with black butterfly patterns on the corner.

"This blanket… these clothes…" Ichigo whispered.

Byakuya nodded. "Rukia specifically asked me to make sure that the first outfit he wears is the one his father had bought him."

Ichigo lower lips started to tremble as he carefully took the child in his arms. He looked down at a sleeping, relaxed child and could feel the tears forming in his eyes.

Renji looked at his friend and said, "His name is Kurosaki Keitaro"

Ichigo snapped his head up, looking at the red head with disbelief. Renji nodded once their eyes met.

"Rukia also wanted him to have the name that you wanted to give your first son: The 'blessed' one, she said."

At this point Ichigo could no longer contain the tears in his eyes. He fell on his knees and carefully hugged his _son_ to his chest. The orange head started to cry out the tears as much as he had after his mother's death. His voice cracked but he kept screaming in pain and agony as the others watched on, getting a sense of his pain from his cries.

Ichigo didn't care if others were watching.

Ichigo didn't care that his image was breaking.

All Ichigo cared about was that Rukia wasn't here with him and their son, Keitaro.

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A bit sad... but I kinda wanted it to be like this until Rukia comes back (and yes, I'm letting it out there pretty broadly that she'll be back. I'm not into sad fanfics. so I'm fine with letting you guys know what'll happen in the future. Hope this doesn't affect you guys too much... then again, I'm sure many of you guys already suspected this ;D)

The next chapter is hella short and a bit sad. Read and see what i mean!


	21. Waiting

**Author's Note: The second chapter for today. I think my chapters are getting short and shorter... heck, this was only one page long :P I'm losing my touch... but it'll get longer once the excitment comes back, though I won't tell you when that'll be**

**This is a short, sad chapter about how Ichigo feels after getting some time to clear his head. Read and see what he thinks and how he'll react to his son.**

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach

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**FYI:** I uploaded two chapters!

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Chapter 20: Waiting

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Ichigo is sitting in the darkness watching his sleeping child in the little crib in the middle of his room. His father, who knew about Rukia's pregnancy from the very beginning, had already bought all the necessary items for Keitaro. But Ichigo still didn't know what to do. Byakuya and the others suddenly came to his house to announce he was a father. But at the same time that Rukia was in grave danger…

_Damn it. Rukia…_ Ichigo thought to himself.

He was sitting on his bed, back against the wall, and one leg curled up under his chin. The moon lightened his dark room and he could see the small chest of Keirtaro rising and falling as he slept. After everyone left, Ichigo gave his son to Yuzu to take care of. He didn't want to see his son yet. He felt like it was his fault that his son might live without a mother…

…just like him.

Ichigo was pulled out of his trance when the baby suddenly started to cry. He was shocked but didn't move. Heck, he didn't know what to do with a crying baby. He didn't even have the milk needed for the kid. Ichigo kept still on his bed as he stared at the crying baby. But when Keitaro's face turned red, Ichigo finally stood up and walked over.

"Hey there little guy," Ichigo whispered as he gently stroked the cheek of his son… but he still did not dare pick him up. But the stroking was working. Keitaro was no longer crying but was softly whimpering.

Ichigo could tell that the kid was missing his mother. And at such a young age, he might never get to see her. Just thinking about this made Ichigo choke as tears formed in his eyes again. Ichigo stopped stroking Keitaro's cheek and tightened both his grips on the crib. Quietly he cried, hating himself for not being there when Rukia needed him the most. Hating himself for depriving his son of his mother's touch.

A sudden cooing sound got Ichigo's attention again as he jerked his head up and saw his son's dark, amber eyes looking up at him. He wiped away the tears and smiled at his son. Keitaro kept looking at his father with eyes that did not want to sleep.

Slowly, Ichigo lowered his arms and lifted the small body, making sure to support the head. It still felt awkward to hold the baby that you didn't know existed until a few hours ago. As Ichigo brought the child towards his chest, he walked back and gently sat on his bed.

"Can't go to sleep?" He asked the wide-awake baby. "Yeah, me neither. I miss your mother so much…" Ichigo swallowed the lump in his throat before smiling again. "Keitaro, I want you to know that your mother loves you. And she will always love you. So be a good boy and wait for her with me because your mother is going to come back…'Yup, Rukia is going to come back to us. So let's be patient."

Ichigo felt the grip in his chest loosen when his son finally closed his eyes. He let out a sigh of relief as he leaned back against the wall and looked out the window.

He let out a small smile. "Rukia… we'll be waiting."

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I wanted to end this chapter with a hopeful tone. To be honest I wanted to make life miserable for you guys and end this fanfic. with this chapter and make you guys wait until the sequel... but I knew if I was in your situation I'd hate the writer.

So I'll bring back the happiness soon in this fanfic. before ending it. Just wait a bit longer and hopefully I can finish this with the next update!!


	22. How do I Survive?

**Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews. I'm glad to know people are liking what I'm writing (even with all the grammar and spelling mistakes, lol)**

**This chapter is another sappy one that I tried to update last time but couldn't finish in time. Ichigo is just dealing with raising his son without Rukia... and he's doing pretty good.**

**Disclaimer**: I do NOT own Bleach

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Chapter 21: How Do I Survive?

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Ichigo was sitting on his bed, feeding Keitaro the formula that Urahara had created specifically for the child. It's been almost three weeks since Keitaro entered his life and Ichigo knew he was willing to give up everything for his son.

Most of the time, Ichigo didn't even bother going to school. Of course Isshin would call Uryuu and Chad to literally carry Ichigo to school, but the new father would run back home whenever he was able to escape their grasp, which was usually around lunch time. The whole school went into shock after finding out that Ichigo and Rukia had a son together. They've been wondering where the petite woman was the past few months. But what was starting to bother them was the fact that Rukia was no longer present in Ichigo's house.

There were rumors circulating that after giving birth, Rukia either died or ran away, not wanting to take the responsibility of a child in her life. Other rumors had it that she was forced to go back home and Ichigo wasn't allowed to see her again. But only the few people who could see spirits knew the real reason behind Rukia's disappearance. Ichigo wouldn't have said anything if the rumors were involved only around him, but whenever he hears people talking negatively about Rukia and Keitaro it made the orange head furious, beating up anyone who got caught. Uryuu and Chad had to restrain their friend many times while Orihime, Tatsuki, Mizuiro and even Keigo went around defending Rukia's honor.

The school had been told that while giving birth Rukia went into critical condition so is unable to move from her bed. She had to be transported to the main hospital and isn't allowed visitors. So part of the truth had been revealed and it was enough to shut everyone up within a few days.

Ichigo looked down to see Keitaro no longer drinking his milk. The father sighed as he pulled the bottle away from his son and examined how much he drank. Keitaro still wasn't drinking enough food. Isshin worries that the child will malnourish himself but upon taking tests Keitaro was still healthy. The new grandfather concluded that it was only because he wasn't drinking his mother's milk. But since there was nothing that they could do about it, Ichigo and Isshin had been struggling to increase Keitaro's intake of his meal or else it might affect his health in the future.

"Oniichan, dinner is ready," Yuzu softly announced from his door.

Ichigo nodded as he slightly shifted Keitaro in his arms and got up to follow his sister down to the kitchen table.

"ICHIGO!"

"I said stop doing that!" Ichigo yelled as he stopped his father's attack by grabbing his face and stopping him in midair, "Can't you see I'm holding Keitaro?!"

Isshin jumped back and crossed his arms over his chest. "That just shows how you can't protect your child. I will have to put you through more training or else something will happen to my grandson."

Ichigo only grunted as he sat on his chair and held his son in his arms, lightly tapping his back to burp the child.

Karin eyed her brother and smirked. "You really look like a father like that."

"That's because I am one," Ichigo smirked back.

Isshin stood up again and ran around the table, clapping his hands above his head continuously. "And I'm a grandfather! How much happier can I be?" He ran to his wife's poster and looked at her picture with teary eyes. "Oh, love of my life! Can you see how handsome our grandson is? He is just like how you and I had hoped for!"

"Otousan! Please sit down and eat your dinner before it gets cold!" Yuzu pouted which was enough to bring back her father to the table.

Ichigo set Keitaro on his bouncer so he could eat his dinner. Kon silently crawled to the baby and eyed him.

"Geez, neesan just had to give birth to an exact replica of Ichigo. Now there are two ugly people in this world… well, at least he doesn't have Ichigo's outrageous hair color," he observed.

Ichigo picked up the Mod Soul by its plushy head and brought his face close to his. "What did you just say?"

Kon started to sweat heavily. "That your son is as handsome as you?" he hoped Ichigo would buy it.

But of course Ichigo knew Kon was lying. So he handed Kon to Keitaro who automatically took the lion plushy and shoved him into his mouth.

"AW! Ichigo! Tell Kei to stop sucking me—NO! My cottons are getting soaked!"

Suddenly Ichigo cell phone rings and he reaches into his pocket to get it. He looks at the screen and sees Chad's name. "Oi, Chad. What's up?"

"_You didn't come to school again, Ichigo," _Chad spoke on the other line.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I'm just really worried about Keitaro since he's still not eating enough."

"… _I see. Well, the others and I will be there shortly to drop off your work._"

"Thanks man." Ichigo replied before hanging up his phone.

And just like Chad said, he arrived at the Kurosaki Clinic with Uryuu, Mizurio and Keigo just as Ichigo and his family finished dinner.

"So, anything new today?" Ichigo asked.

Uryuu dropped some paperwork into the Substitute Shinigami's hands and shook his head. "It's pretty much the same thing like last week. I'm sure you'll find it easy."

Keigo jumped onto the ground and crawled towards Keitaro. "I still can't believe the beautiful Kuchiki-san left me to have your baby!" he whined.

Ichigo kicked him away from his son. "Stay away! I don't want Kei to get influenced by your stupidity."

"How mean!' Keigo jumped up and started his overly-dramatic tears. "Kuchiki-san is such an angel to take a devil like you into her arms. And now I'm left with no one else but my Goddess of Valley—OOF!" Keigo tried to describe Orihime's bosoms when Uryuu landed a hard punch through his stomach, knocking the air right out of him

Ichigo whistled lowly. "Nice job."

"And I thought you didn't want Keitaro-kun to get influenced by anything bad," Mizuiro smiled.

Ichigo shook his head. "Learning to fight to defend one's friend and knock out perverts isn't a bad thing. I'm planning on teaching Kei how to fight once he's old enough."

"Looks like you're going to make another 'Kurosaki Ichigo'," Chad chuckled, "Will he be able to surpass you someday?"

Ichigo grinned with excitement. "Who knows? But I'm going to try and make that happen."

"Oh, what a loving father my son is!" Isshin suddenly jumps out from behind and wraps his arms around Ichigo.

"What the?! Get off of me old man!" He yelled, trying to escape his father's grasp but Isshin only tightened his grip.

"The Kurosaki's must learn how to protect their family. So I shall contribute in raising my grandson!"

"You will do NO SUCH THING!" Ichigo shouted as he threw his father across the room.

"Hehe!"

Everyone looked at each other before looking down at Keitaro who was giggling on his bouncer, the saliva-covered Kon still in his grasp.

Ichigo raises an eyebrow and he kneels in front of his son. "What? You like it when I fight? Or do you just like seeing your ojiisan getting beaten up?"

Keitaro only looks at his father with a smile.

Ichigo smiles back and picks him up from the bouncer. "I'm going to take that as 'both.' When you grow up I'm going to teach you how to fight so you'll know how to defend yourself when you get older."

Chad walks up and eyes the child in the arms of his best friend. "Will Keitaro also be a shinigami?"

There was a sudden silence in the room.

Ichigo looked over at his father who was now standing next to him. "Dad?"

Isshin stroked his chin as he eyed his grandson. "No doubt about it Kei-kun will be a shinigami but I do not know when and how it'll happen. Ichigo's reiatsu got sealed and it couldn't be released until Rukia-chan triggered it. And Keitaro's reiatsu might respond differently."

Ichigo sighs. He knows very well what it is like to see spirits at a young age. And he really didn't want his son to be targeted by Hollows, which is most likely to happen even with his reiatsu concealed.

"Dad, has there been anymore news from Urahara and Yoruichi about the new arrancars we faced last time?" Ichigo asked.

Isshin shook his head and sighed. "Ever since that night they haven't had any weird encounters."

"Orihime, Chad and I went over there to meet Nell and she said that things seemed to be back to normal. Nothing suspicious was going on but they'll continue keeping an eye out," Uryuu added.

"And the number of Hollows appearing in Karakura returned to normal," Chad pointed out.

But Ichigo still didn't feel like everything was going to be alright. He looked down at his son who was yawning widely and closing his amber eyes for a much needed nap.

The past few weeks Ichigo had been feeling more cautious with his surroundings. He could never shake off the feeling that a Hollow or an arrancar might come and hurt Keitaro. This was one of the reasons why he never really liked leaving his son. Sure Isshin and Urahara were strong enough but they were also stupid so Ichigo couldn't relay on them (which led to Isshin crying against Masaki's poster and complaining about how their son won't even give him the chance to be a good grandfather).

And if a new threat was really coming, Ichigo needed to get ready to fight to protect his son.

He knew Rukia would do the same.

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A bit sad w/o Rukia... but here's the thing: you'll see her in the next chapter!! YEEPEEEEEE!! just read and see what i mean


	23. Welcome Home

**Auhtor's Note: Here is the chapter everyone has been waiting for!! Rukia comes back and saves our Ichigo from the rain he's been starting to feel in his life again. Sorry if i'm not good at hiding things to create more suspense... but like i said in my profile, I only like happy endings so this was to be expected. read and see how i decided to portray Ichigo as a father and when his love returns.**

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own Bleach

Chapter 22: Welcome Home

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4 Months Later

"Keitaro!"

"Ei!"

The five month old Kurosaki Keitaro squealed with delight when his father rushed in the door after school, picked him up out of his walker, and gave a long kiss on his chubby cheek.

"How's my big boy doing today?" Ichigo asked with a big smile.

"Okaeri oniichan!" Yuzu called out from the kitchen.

"Tadaima," Ichigo replied with his usual smirk.

He shifted Keitaro's body so that he was holding him in one arm, and closed the door. The father and son walked towards the kitchen to grab something to eat.

"Hey Yuzu, where's Karin?" Ichigo asked as he grabbed Keitaro's bottle Yuzu already prepared.

"Karin-chan is at soccer practice. I was waiting for you to come home so I can go to her," Yuzu replied, "Afterwards we're going to my friend's sleepover."

"What about pop?"

Yuzu quickly wrapped up the last of her cookies and placed it in her bag. "I think he's meeting up with Urahara-san tonight. Something about another drinking get-together."

Ichigo shook his head with disbelief. With a cookie in his mouth (which he secretly took when Yuzu wasn't looking), a bottle in one hand, and a baby in the other arm, Ichigo made his way towards the living room and sat on the couch. He started to feed Keitaro as Yuzu quickly left.

"Oi, Kurosaki."

The said teen turned around to see Uryuu walking in with Chad, Orihime and Tatsuki in tow.

"What are you guys doing here?" Ichigo asked as he helped Keitaro with his bottle.

"You forgot these books," Tatsuki dropped three textbooks next to her friend, "Seriously, these days you keep forgetting things. We're graduating this year so the least you could do is ready yourself for college entrance exams."

Ichigo shrugged. "Wa li. I'm so preoccupied with Keitaro that I just stopped caring about school."

Orihime walked up and smiled at the raven-haired baby that was still feeding on the bottle but playing with his father's gigantic finger with one of his tiny hands. "He's so cute. And already so big!"

"Yeah," Ichigo nodded with a sad smile, "I only wish Rukia was here to see him."

It suddenly became quiet. Everyone knew Ichigo was still depressed and waiting for Rukia. Though he may act all happy and smile widely at his son, whenever Ichigo was alone he would go into emo-mode and often times cry. So nobody dared mention Rukia's name incase he breaks down in front of them.

Chad finally broke the silence. "I'm sure she's going to come back any day now."

Ichigo brought back his fake-happy expression and smiled at his friends. "You're right. So there is no need to sulk, especially in front of my son."

Tatsuki nodded. "The kid really does look a lot like you… But I can see a lot of Kuchiki's traits in him as well. Like his hair color, his nose, and not to mention his attitude."

Ichigo laughed. "Yeah. This kid really knows how to drive me insane just like his mother."

The four friends stayed for another hour talking with Ichigo and playing with Keitaro. When the sun was nearly down they all decided to go.

"Anyways, have a nice weekend Ichigo!" Tatsuki waved at her friend as she followed Orihime out the door.

"Bye Kurosaki-kun!"

"See ya!" Ichigo waved back and Keitaro smiled widely at the two ladies who turned around the corner.

Chad patted Ichigo on the shoulder and then ruffled Keitaro's hair. "I'll see you later. Take care."

"Yeah, thanks man," Ichigo nodded at his big friend who walked towards the sunset (insert cowboy theme music:D)

"Kurosaki."

Ichigo turned around and smirked. "I'll see you later Qunicy."

Uryuu pushed up his glasses and walked up to Keitaro. He ruffled his hair and smiled at the giggling baby. "See you later kid." He looked up and ruffled Ichigo's orange hair as well. "See you later too, big guy."

"Bastard," Ichigo glared.

"And don't worry," Uryuu continued as he walked out, "I'm sure Kuchiki-san is recovering nicely. She'll be back before you know it."

Ichigo's eyes widen for a second and then smiled. "Yeah, I know." He watched as his last friend also disappeared.

The sun was now almost gone.

"Well Kei," Ichigo looked down at his son, "Looks like it's just you and me now."

Keitaro gave his father a toothless smile as Ichigo closed the door and walked back inside. Ichigo placed Keitaro back in his walker and went into the kitchen. "I don't know about you but I'm starving. Wonder what Yuzu made…" Ichigo opened the refrigerator and looked at the food that Yuzu left for him to eat. He pulled out a plate and looked at it.

"Ah!"

Ichigo looked down to see his squealing son looking up at him with his hands raised up high. "What? You want to eat this?" He placed the plate on the kitchen counter and lifted his son up in his arms again. "Sorry but you just had one whole bottle so no more food for you."

When Keitaro became a little over a month and a half old, he finally started to eat more normally, much to Ichigo's relief. And now he would eat baby food, though Urahara still supplies him with the formula that was to help Keitaro since he was still in a vulnerable state.

While holding Keitaro in one arm, Ichigo placed the plate in the microwave and pressed several buttons. He looked at his son and smirked. "So what should we do tonight?"

As if understanding what his father had just said, Keitaro started to make random noises. "Eh! Beh—ah! Boooo…lu!"

Ichigo looked at his son with a raised eyebrow.

_What the hell?_ He thought.

Just then the microwave timer went off and pulled Ichigo out of his 'conversation' with his son. He pulled out the food and carefully walked over to the couch.

"Alright Keitaro," Ichigo sat down and placed Keitaro on his lap while the food on the coffee table in front of them, "Let's watch your favorite show." He turned on the T.V and turned to Chappy the Rabbit and His Adventures. For some reason Keitaro would always squeal with joy upon seeing Chappy… even though there was no way a five month old baby could understand what was happening.

_Must be a natural reaction he inherited from Rukia,_ Ichigo smirked.

The father and son watched the show for another hour, with Keitaro squealing whenever Chappy was on the screen and Ichigo eating his dinner. When the show was over, Ichigo held Keitaro in one arm and walked back to the kitchen to put the dish into the sink. He turned around and was about to go back to the living room when he suddenly smelled something.

Ichigo looked around to solve what was giving off that foul smell, but stopped when Keitaro suddenly started to fidget around in Ichigo's arm, furiously.

With an eyebrow raised, Ichigo looked at his son and a dreaded expression spread across his face. He lifted Keitaro above his head and sniffed at his diaper.

He soon regretted it.

Ichigo lowered his son down with a scrunched up face. "Did you just take a dump?"

Keitaro only looked at his father with his hand in his mouth.

With a sigh, Ichigo walked up the stairs. "That's what you get for eating too much. Sometimes you remind me too much of your mother." Ichigo said as he looked at his son.

Ichigo walked to the bathroom and prepared another battle with a stinking diaper. Ichigo laid Keitaro on the sink's counter and slowly pulled the straps off from the sides of the diaper and pulled it down.

"Holy shi—" Ichigo stopped himself just in time before cursing in front of his son. Still, the gruesome thing in Keitaro's diaper looked like censored with censored and censored, not to mention the color... No wonder it smelled so horrible.

"Hehe."

Ichigo looked up to see a laughing baby. "What? You making fun of your old man by creating something like this?" he pointed at the content inside the diaper.

Keitaro only blinked his large, amber eyes several times. Ichigo sighed as he gently tugged the diaper off, making sure to keep the legs lifted up. Ichigo grabbed several baby wipes from the shelf and wiped Keitaro's shit-covered butt.

When Ichigo cleaned off as much as he could, he took off Keitaro's clothes and walked him over to the tub. "Okay, let's get you thoroughly clean." Ichigo turned on the faucet and allowed the water to fill up the small tub that Isshin had proudly written on the side: _My Grandson's Boat_.

Unlike most other babies Keitaro _loved _the water. He kept splashing with his tiny hands and Ichigo constantly had to use his arms to wipe off the little water-bullets.

After long, excruciating minutes of water-fun, Ichigo finally got Keitaro cleaned. As Ichigo ruffled his son's raven hair with a towel he looked around the bathroom.

"Man Keitaro, you did a fine job making this place a mess."

The young Kurosaki only giggled as his father carried his naked body to his room.

Ichigo finally got Keitaro in a new diaper and dressed in a new set of clothes. They walked back downstairs and Ichigo placed Keitaro back in his walker.

"Stay here while I go wash the dishes," he said as he kissed the top of Keitaro's head.

Keitaro only laughed as he pushed his dad away and started to pound on the doll Uryuu made for him.

Ichigo smiled as he looked at the doll.

_Maybe I should let Keitaro play with Kon again…_

With a laugh Ichigo walked into the kitchen and started on the dishes. It was a good thing Yuzu cleaned up before she left because Ichigo only had to wash the plate and utensils he used a few minutes ago, along with Keitaro's bottle.

While using the sponge to clean the plate, Ichigo sighs as his eyes became droopy again. Whenever Keitaro wasn't looking, Ichigo would return to his depressing state as Rukia plagued his mind. Several times he tried to reach her in Soul Society, but he stopped after the fifth try (all in one week) when Unohana came up to him. She had to explain that because of his uncontrolled and intense reiatsu it might suffocate Rukia. Apparently he wasn't the only one forbidden near her. Yamamoto granted special permission to Unohana to forbid anyone in Soul Society within several yards of her Division without her authorization. She didn't want to take the chance of someone powerful or with uncontrolled reiatsu to accidentally kill Rukia.

This thought itself made the orange head scowl even more as he stopped scrubbing. Ichigo stared intently at his hands as he thought back on the five months he raised Keitaro without Rukia. It was hell…

"Rukia…" Ichigo sighed as he closed his eyes and his lips formed into a thin line.

Kuchiki Rukia had never stopped smiling in Ichigo's head and now he became too obsessed. Since day one and even up until a few days ago Ichigo had been hallucinating about the woman he loved. Just seeing a short girl with dark hair made him think it was Rukia. He would even run after the woman, only to feel his heart ripping apart upon realizing it wasn't her.

It was becoming too painful for him.

He really didn't want to raise his son without Rukia. How will he face life when Keitaro asks him about his mother someday?

No.

Rukia will come back. So Ichigo had to patient and not lose hope.

Even though these past months have been a living hell, Ichigo did learn a lot of new things. He learned to take more responsibility and be more patient. It was a good thing too since Rukia would most likely praise him when she gets back. She had been arguing with him constantly about his inability to think before acting.

Just thinking about Rukia and all the happy times they've shared with one another made Ichigo smile a bit as he finished the dishes.

But then…

"…"

As he placed the items onto a rack to dry off, an unexpected feeling struck him. Ichigo turned off the water and stood still. Even Keitaro was quiet.

"…"

Everything was still and there was a long pause where Ichigo tried to concentrate on where this weird feeling was coming from. It felt like a small amount of reiatsu… but it was hard to detect. But that wasn't the weird thing. The thing was that this reiatsu felt familiar. Almost like…

Suddenly Ichigo heard the front door opening and closing.

"Tadaima."

Ichigo felt his body stiffen as beads of sweat started to fall down his body.

That reiatsu…

That voice…

_I'm sure of it!_

Ichigo ran out of the kitchen and stopped when the front door was in his view. He drew in a sharp breath as he focused his vision on a familiar figure.

A young woman pulled off her shoes as she stepped into the house. She was wearing the exact dress she was wearing when she left that it seemed like she was never been gone.

Upon seeing Ichigo staring at her, she gave him her warm smile. "Tadaima, Ichigo."

Just hearing her voice was enough to pull him out of his trance.

"RUKIA!"

Ichigo cried out as he ran towards the woman he's been dreaming of for the past fourteen months. He roughly pulled Rukia into his embrace and had a firm hold on her. Upon feeling her warmth Ichigo's throat began to choke up and tears were threatening to come out.

"I'm not dreaming am I?" Ichigo asked, "Is it really you? Are you really here?"

Rukia lightly pulled herself out of his hug and gave him a warm smile with tears in her eyes. "Baka. Can't you tell dreams from reality? Of course it's me. I'm home."

Ichigo let out the breath he didn't know he's been holding. He grabbed the back of her head and pulled her back into his embrace. "Thank goodness," he whispered in her ears.

Rukia let out a small laugh as tears finally poured out from them both. "I've missed you," she whispered.

"Yeah, me too," Ichigo replied as he kissed her temple, then her forehead, her teary eyes, her cute nose, and finally, her lips.

At first he only lightly pecked her lips but the second and third peck became longer until the fourth kiss became more passionate and deeper.

"Mmph," Rukia moaned as she closed her eyes and responded to Ichigo's kisses, taking in all the pleasure the two had been missing for over a year.

"Eh!"

Rukia's eyes shot open upon hearing a small sound.

Ichigo reluctantly pulled away when Rukia stopped responding but he understood why. He grabbed her wrist and smiled at her. "Com'on," he whispered as he led her to the living room.

Rukia allowed Ichigo to lead her but she stopped dead in her tracks upon seeing a baby near the coffee table. Fresh tears swelled up in her eyes but they didn't fall down yet.

Ichigo released his hold as he walked towards the confused looking Keitaro. He pulled their son out of his walker and walked towards Rukia. "Rukia, this is our son," he said but she didn't move an inch. He smiled as he ruffled Keitaro's raven-hair. "See Kei? I told you your okasan was going to come back."

Rukia slowly and cautiously brought her arms up and towards the baby. While Ichigo slightly leaned Keitaro towards Rukia, Keitaro looked at the lady for a second before reaching over into Rukia's embrace.

Tears finally fell down as soon as Rukia felt Keitaro's tiny body.

"Keitaro," she whispered as she fell on her knees, hugging her son tightly against her body. "Keitaro," she choked through her tears.

Ichigo kneeled down next to Rukia and rubbed her back. "Hey, why are you crying when you should be happy?"

"Baka," she choked, "I'm crying because I _am_ happy."

Ichigo only let out a small laugh as he brought his tiny family into his embrace. "And we're finally together."

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Okay... I know the reunion seemed a bit rushed and.. well, awkward. But that's because I wasn't planning on including it until the next chapter. I decided to make Rukia return now because the next chapter was long enough with hella other things. So i apologize if this chapter didn't end well. It didn't really please me either... but please don't kill me for it! (begging on knees with watery eyes)

Read the final chapter to this series which'll have you guys anticpating for the sequel!


	24. Our Happy Ending?

**Auhtor's Note: AAAAHHHHHHHH!! I finally finished the last chapter! Of course the sequel will start, but not until summer (sorry but I really can't put off my school anymore than I already have). Hope you guys like this fanfic. I'll try to improve my style of writing in time for the sequel and not rush through it. So it'll be longer with hella more action. **

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Please read and enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **I do NOT own Bleach

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**FYI:** I uploaded three chapters!

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Chapter 23: Our Happy Ending?

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Rukia kept tickling Keitaro's ribs and the baby kept laughing like crazy, rolling around his parents' bed.

Ichigo walked in after taking a shower and smiled. He leaned against the doorframe and watched as Rukia kissed Keitaro's little, round tummy. Ichigo felt a 'content' feeling across his chest as he watched the mother of his son actually alive and here to play with their son.

After a few more seconds Ichigo finally pushed himself off the frame and walked over to his tiny family.

"What so funny?" he asked as he jumped on the bed next to Rukia to join her in kissing Keitaro.

Rukia smiled as she lightly hit the orange head. "Why are you trying to interfere into my precious 'mother-son' time?"

Ichigo laughed as he grabbed Keitaro on his sides. The father lied on his back as he lifted his son into the air. He made weird faces up at Keitaro who was giggling like crazy.

Rukia laughed as she lied down next to Ichigo. "Don't tell me this is what you guys do regularly."

"So what if it is?" Ichigo asked as lightly threw Keitaro in the air and grabbed him.

Rukia laid her head on Ichigo's shoulder, watching Keitaro's face laughing every time his father juggled him in the air.

After several more minutes of playing, Keitaro's eyes drooped down and he was ready to sleep. Ichigo cradled his son in his arms and started to gently rock him. But he stopped when he noticed Rukia staring intently at their son. With a smile, Ichigo leaned Keitaro's tired body into Rukia's arms.

Rukia looked up upon receiving Keitaro unexpectedly. "What are you doing?"

"Just gently rock him like I did," Ichigo instructed as he helped start the motion in Rukia's arms. He looked at her and leaned closer. "I know you've been _dieing _to do this."

Rukia couldn't voice the words of appreciation so she just nodded her head as Ichigo led the small rocking motion. She watched on as her son quickly closed his eyes and fell asleep, making small noises as he entered la-la land.

"He's beautiful," she whispered as she gently bent down to kiss his forehead.

"Yeah, he is," Ichigo agreed. He then took the sleeping child into his arms and walked towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

Ichigo turned around and smiled at the oblivious woman. "I'm taking Keitaro to his crib. Just relax and I'll be back in a second."

Rukia nodded as she saw Ichigo walking out of their room and into the room next to theirs. It was originally a storage room but Isshin cleared out the area and was able to reconstruct the room into a small nursery.

Ichigo leaned over the crib and gently laid Keitaro in it. He looks down and noticed his son sleeping with a peaceful face. Ichigo hadn't seen this expression too often, making him wonder whether or not Keitaro was aware that Rukia wasn't with him all this time. But now that she's back it only seemed natural for Keitaro to sleep with more ease.

"Goodnight squirt," Ichigo gently brushed the back of his fingers against Keitaro's cheeks and left the nursery, making sure to leave the door slightly opened.

When Ichigo returned to his room, he looked over at his bed and noticed Rukia laying on it, though she wasn't sleeping. She seemed deep in thought and hadn't realized him in the room.

Ichigo smirked as he quietly walked over and literally threw himself on their bed, lying directly on top of her.

"Ichigo! Get—oof—off!" Rukia squirmed around as she tried to push his heavy (and muscular O.o) body off of her.

Ichigo chuckled at her desperate pushing so he allowed himself to push more of his weight on her, stopping her completely from moving.

The petite woman glared up into the man who was smirking. She felt an angry vein pop out of her head just by looking at that cocky attitude. With much struggle, Rukia brought up one of her hand and quickly slapped Ichigo on the side of his head.

"Ow! Bitch, what was that for?" he glared.

"You're suffocating me," she glared back.

Ichigo didn't move from his position although he pulled his weight off a tad bit. "Is this how you react when I'm happy to see you?"

"Well, that depends on whether you're really happy to see or if you're happy trying to kill me," she smirked.

Ichigo smiled as he lowered his head closer. "Trust me; I'm _extremely _happy to have you back."

Rukia moved her head slightly with a glint in her eyes. "Then prove it."

Without another word Ichigo closed the gap between their lips and immediately delved his tongue into her mouth. Rukia moaned as she used her free arm to wrap around his neck and pull him closer.

Ichigo smiled against her lips as he slid his hands up and down her body, little by little remembering every curvature of her body that's been haunting his dreams for so long.

As Ichigo started to move his lips down to her jaws and onto her neck, Rukia was able to free her other arm which immediately went into his orange lock. She moaned even louder when she felt his tongue working wonders against her skin.

"Ichi…go…" Rukia breathed out.

The orange head only grunted as a response.

Rukia placed both her hands on his cheeks and brought his face up to look into his eyes. She smiled upon seeing his lust and passion filled eyes. "I love you," she whispered.

Ichigo smiled and lightly pressed his lips on hers again. As he lifted up, he responded, "I love you, too… so much more than you'll ever know."

Rukia fought back her tears as she softly spoke, "I'll never leave you again."

"Good," Ichigo sighed, "Because I'm never going to let you leave my sight again. Get ready for an eternity of being with me."

"I wouldn't want to live any other way," Rukia smirked.

"…Then let's get married," Ichigo whispered into her ear.

For a second Rukia was still. She turned her head to look into Ichigo's eyes. And he was staring back with such intensity and seriousness that tears was finally falling from the corner of her eyes. Ichigo pressed his thumb beneath her eye and wiped away the glistening waters that slowly fell.

"Is that a 'yes'?" he smirked.

The tears kept falling and Rukia couldn't bring out her voice. She looked into his eyes and smiled, slowly nodding her head.

Ichigo also let out a huge smile. He leaned down and pressed his lips on hers again. As he lifted away, he smirked.

"Your brother is going to kill me."

Rukia laughed out loud as Ichigo buried his head in the crook of her neck to continue where he left off. Clothes were tossed onto the floor and small moans and groans filled the air as the two lovers celebrated their reunion in a dance that only they knew.

--

Ichigo woke up the next morning upon feeling something soft on his chest. Blinking open one eye, Ichigo looked down and let out a sigh of relief. Rukia was sleeping peacefully next to him, her beautiful dark locks spread across his chest, and her ear listening to the rhythms of his heart.

_So it wasn't another dream. She really is back_, Ichigo smiled.

His arms around her waist tightened, pulling her up a little so he could reach down and kiss the top of her head. He breathed in her scent which always had the mysterious power to relax him.

Within a few seconds Rukia started to shift around. With much difficulty, she peeked open an eye only to see a pair of muscular chest right in front of her. It took her a moment to figure out her surrounding.

"You awake?"

Rukia looked up and smiled as Ichigo's face came into view. Nodding her head, Rukia allowed Ichigo to pull her deeper into their embrace, almost as if she'd disappear if he let go of her.

The two lovers lied on their bed for as long as they can, just happy to be reunited. But of course all good things must come to an end.

"_WAAAAHHH!"_

Rukia jumped up upon hear her baby's cries… but why was it so loud when he was separated by a wall?

Ichigo groaned as he jumped out of bed, searching for his pants.

"Ichigo, where is Keitaro's voice coming from?" Rukia asked, still looking around.

Ichigo finally located his boxers and got them on. "It's coming from the baby monitor," he pointed towards a device that was on his desk, "It's like a walkie-talkie that alerts me when Keitaro is awake."

Rukia was about to ask again when Ichigo threw her his large shirt and motioned her to follow him. With an annoyed pout, she did as she was told and followed him to the nursery.

And sure enough the red-faced Keitaro was crying for attention.

"Hey there big guy," Ichigo lifted his son and held him against his shoulder, "What do you think you're doing waking your okasan and me from our nice sleep."

"Stop being such an idiot," Rukia smacked his back.

Keitaro was still whimpering and as soon as Rukia came to view, he stretched his arms towards her, fidgeting in Ichigo's arms. Rukia smiled as she took her son into her arms and cradled him, automatically ending the child's cries.

Ichigo smiled and did a fake pout at Keitaro. "Already liking your mother more than me?"

Keitaro only sucked his fingers, looking between both his parents.

The two parents laughed as they walked back to their room to get ready for a new day. After changing into new clothes, they walked downstairs to eat breakfast. Ichigo placed Keitaro on his high chair and walked into the kitchen to grab the food. Rukia sat in front of Keitaro, entertaining the little Ichigo-replica by teasing him with a Chappy doll.

"Looks like Keitaro also loves Chappy," Rukia happily exclaimed.

Ichigo snorted as he came back with their breakfast. "I just hope this doesn't last too long."

Rukia kicked his shin from under the table while grabbing a piece of toast. Ichigo cursed under his breath as he started to feed Keitaro some baby food.

Rukia looks around the house and smiles. "This place really hasn't changed."

Just then Ichigo and Rukia heard a lot of noises coming from outside. Ichigo stood up to check it out when they heard the front door being busted open.

"Is she really here?!"

"I sensed her this morning!"

"You're too slow!"

"Get out of my way!"

Rukia looked up in time to see her friends running into the kitchen. Once their eyes fell on her everyone became silent.

"Tadiama," she smiles.

"RUKIA-NEESAN!"

"KUCHIKI-SAN!"

Yuzu, Karin, Orihime and Tatsuki lunged at the petite woman, hugging her tightly while the men only watched on, smiling widely themselves.

Uryuu notices Ichigo watching with a smile. He walks over to his rival and smirks. "I see you're glowing."

"Shut up," Ichigo pouts, but grinning at the same time.

Uryuu smirked as Rukia was finally released.

"I'm glad to see everyone back together again."

Rukia looked up and saw Isshin walking inside with Urahara and Yoruichi behind him, all three of them smiling.

The shinigami stood up and bowed. "Tadaima… otousan."

Isshin, after hearing the last word, brought out his silly smile as his background got covered in flowers and hearts. "My Rukia-chan finally called me 'otousan'! Come here and give daddy a hug, my dear third-daughter!" Isshin squealed as he brought Rukia into a tight embrace.

Ichigo stepped in and shoved his father away. "Will you stop doing that?! Don't try to kill her when she just got back!"

"HAHA! What are you so afraid of Ichigo?" Isshin teased, his hands on his hips, "Being a bit too overprotective, aren't you?"

"I remember when you were like that with Masaki," Yoruichi grinned.

"MASAKI!" Isshin ran to her poster at the mentioning of her name, "Rukia-chan has finally returned and we are now all a family once again."

"Will you stop embarrassing us?!" Karin kicked her father to the ground.

Rukia laughed alongside with everyone else.

_Yes… nothing has changed._

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After Yuzu made a grand "WELCOME BACK RUKIA-NEESAN!" breakfast, they were all sitting in the living room, the air suddenly tense. Rukia was holding a tired Keitaro with Ichigo sitting next to her. The others occupied different seats in the room and they were all equally wearing the same worried expression.

"So you don't when it's going to happen?" Ichigo asked.

Yoruichi nodded her head. "Thankfully Nell was able to escape from their grasp without substantial injuries, but when she tried to locate their location again it was already gone. Still, the information she got told us enough that a new threat is coming for sure."

Ichigo groaned annoyingly as his head fell back to the couch. Just when everything was supposed to get better, the new threat that had been hiding for almost a year suddenly pops right back up.

He looked over when he felt Rukia slightly fidgeting in her seat. He places his arm over her shoulders and pulls her towards him. No matter what he had to protective his family.

"We'll keep an eye out but I'm afraid getting into Hueco Mundo will become more difficult from now on," Urahara spoke behind his fan, "Let's just hope nothing happens for some time."

Ichigo nodded as his grip around Rukia tightened.

"But let's not get too sad about this!" Isshin jumped up, "Rukia-chan has finally returned and it is time to plan the wedding!"

Ichigo's ears perked up and released Rukia. "What—"

"Yuzu! Help daddy plan the wedding!" Isshin interrupted Ichigo.

"Hai!" Yuzu happily replied, following her father to his office.

"I didn't know you guys are engaged!" Orihime threw her arms around Rukia and cried out tears of joy, "I'll help with the reception."

Rukia awkwardly pulled her friend away. "Inoue, what are you talking about? We're not getting married just yet—"

"Who is getting married?"

Ichigo suddenly froze at the sound of a way-too familiar voice. He slowly turned around to see Byakuya's cold glare. "H-hey," he waved his hand, "When did you get here?"

The kensiken-wearing man turned towards him and stepped forward. "Now that my sister is well, I want you to fully explain yourself to me, kozo."

Ichigo awkwardly laughed, slowly pulling himself up from his seat. "Well you see—" his words got cut off again as he saw Byakuya's hand slowly reaching for his Zanpaktou. "See ya!" the orange head exclaimed as he used his shinigami badge to jump out of his body and shunpo out of his house.

"GET BACK HERE, KOZO!"

Byakuya's deadly cries could be heard everywhere as he chased after the man who was supposedly getting married to his sister.

Rukia stared out the door where the two men had just left and couldn't help but feel worried.

Yoruichi noticed this so she walked over and patted the petite woman's head. "Don't worry. I doubt Bya-kun'll kill Ichigo to leave you as a single mother. That's a lot worse than having a child before getting married," she grinned.

If Yoruichi was trying to comfort Rukia, it wasn't working too well. And things got even crazier as more people showed up.

"I just saw Kuchiki-taicho chasing after Ichigo!" Renji exclaimed.

Tatsuki laughed. "He didn't take the news about Ichigo and Kuchiki's wedding so well."

"EII!" Matsumoto squealed as she hugged Rukia from behind, "I can't believe you two are finally getting married. Will there be booze at the wedding?"

"Matsumoto! Stop asking such ridiculous questions!" Hitsugaya yelled at his fukutaicho.

Hinamori lightly chuckled from his side. "She's just getting excited for the wedding. No need to yell, Shiro-chan!"

Before the boy-genius could retort, Isshin and Yuzu came flying back into the room. The older Kurosaki threw his arm over Urahara and the two cheered for the happy couple, acting almost like they were already drunk.

The craziness continued and Rukia just watched from the sidelines as people started to plan her wedding without her. She got out of her trance when she felt Keitaro fidgeting in her arms. He was tired but couldn't sleep with all this ruckus.

Rukia smiled as she silently slipped away and walked upstairs, entering the nursery. She rocked Keitaro just like how Ichigo told her last night, and the baby soon fell asleep.

Kuchiki Rukia looked out the window and smiled at the bright sun, no longer covered by the rainy, gray clouds.

Soon, she'll be _Kurosaki _Rukia.

She liked the sound of that.

**The END**

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**For now.**

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**Here is the last chapter!! hope you guys liked it. Kinda rushed it again but i'm just glad to have created a happy ending with some humor.

I was going to write an epligoue about Ichigo and Rukia's wedding but couldn't since it might affect the sequel (which is currently under revision). You'll see more of our favorite couple this summer so don't leave me!!

Thanks to everyone who has been supporting me since the very beginning. I hope you guys will still be there for my other fanfic. and I'll try not to disappoint you.

I LOVE YOU GUYS!


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